


Old Friends

by ErejeanAnonymous



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, M/M, Manipulative Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Marijuana, Past Levi/Erwin Smith, mentioned anorexia and bulimia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-02
Updated: 2016-07-23
Packaged: 2018-07-19 17:08:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 22
Words: 36,676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7370392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ErejeanAnonymous/pseuds/ErejeanAnonymous
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Jean and Eren were kids they were they were practically inseparable, spending all their free time together playing make believe and sitting up in their treehouse. However, just a few months after Eren turned eleven his parents split up, and it was decided that he would move to Germany to live with his mother. </p>
<p>At the start of the new school year, now at the age of sixteen, Eren moves back to live with his dad and has to go to yet another new school. There are some familiar faces from his childhood, but when he finds out that they've moved on he has to make do with making new friends of his own.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Just a quick explanation of the British school system if you need it  
> Instead of grades we have years, so that's how each age group is split up.  
> Primary school: Ages 4-11 (Nursery; reception; years 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)  
> Secondary school: Ages 11-16 (years 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)  
> Sixth Form: Joined up with secondary school, but not compulsory. Ages 16-18 (years 12 and 13. Some people also go to college at this age.  
> University: Our version of American college (I think. Sorry I don't know how it compares to other countries!)

Starting secondary school quite simply sucks. You go from being the oldest, most respected kids in the playground to being right back down at the bottom again. Everybody is older than you, and they will not hesitate to set you in your place.

What makes it even worse, though? Moving to a different country, where the only person you know is your mother, and leaving the only actual friend you ever had behind. Secondary school is basically hell when you can't even fall into the comfort of friends your own age to soften the blow of the new experience.

Absolute hell, but not impossible to get through. Just find a small group of friends to latch yourself onto for the next five years, and learn how to get by on your own. Easier said than done, of course, but it can be sort of enjoyable once you get used to it. Those five years will be over before you know it, and the relief on that last day is the best feeling out there.

I didn't even bother showing up for the last day of school. All the year 11's would come in with suits and fancy dresses on, giving their final goodbyes before half of them left the damn place forever. Personally, I didn't want to see any of them again. As far as I was concerned, school ended as soon as I had finished with my last exam. It was pointless going back for one day just for social reasons.

In fact, I spent that very last day of school packing up all of my stuff to move back to my hometown. It's not that I hated it in Germany, but I definitely preferred it back where I grew up. So, my mother agreed that I could move back to live with my father and go to sixth form there instead. Of course, I hated leaving her, but she assured me that she would be fine on her own and that I was going to have to leave eventually anyway.

I didn't move straight away, though, instead opting to spend the rest of the summer holidays with my mother. Then, just a few days before school started back up again, I got on my flight back to Britain to live with my dad. It was kind of odd looking around where I grew up again, but at the same time, it almost felt like I had never left in the first place.

For the first time in forever, I was actually sort of excited to be going back to school. Not only was I doing subjects that I actually cared about, but I was also going to be seeing my old best friend for the first time since I left the country. I wasn't even sure why I was looking forward to seeing him so much, it had been so long that it'd probably just be awkward seeing him again, but he was the only friend I had ever really been close to.

Maybe we'd even become close friends again.

On the first day back I made sure to get there early, not wanting to have a bad start to my first year there. My school uniform was just how it was expected to be, with a green and black striped tie and a blazer. It was difficult finding my way around the building since the only time I had ever been there before was when my primary school used the building for their annual Christmas concert.

I bit lightly down on my lower lip as I stared down at my planner, walking slowly along the corridors as I tried to figure out where the room for my first lesson of the day was. A small sigh slipped past my lips, my hand reaching up to run through my hair, before lifting my gaze as I felt someone tap on my shoulder and then turning to face them.

A taller guy was now walking beside me, a welcoming smile showing on his face, his head tilted off to the side ever so slightly. "Hey, I'm guessing you're new here right? You look sort of lost," he said lightly, the warm smile not leaving him as he spoke.

God, I had only been here for two minutes and I already preferred it to my school in Germany.

"Ah, yeah, I'm trying to find B1?" I said quietly, almost hesitant to ask as I looked up to meet his gaze.

The taller male gave a small hum, nodding a bit as he stopped at the end of the main corridor, pointing towards some stairs. "Up there, that's where all of the art rooms are. Class doesn't start for another ten minutes, though, and the younger years will be in class now for registration, so you'll have to wait around somewhere until the bell rings."

I nodded a little along with his explanation, offering a small, genuine smile to him. "Right, thank you."

"Of course. If you need any help finding your next lesson then I'm sure someone from your art class will help you out. Oh, and don't worry about the teacher. She's super nice as long as you get your work done on time. See you around!" He called, giving a small wave as he turned to walk off somewhere else.

"Thank you. See you around," I called back, my smile staying on my face as I started walking in the direction of the art rooms.

Art turned out to be pretty fun. I didn't actually talk to anybody, apart from when asking for directions when the bell rang for the next lesson, but I didn't really mind that. I simply sat with my headphones on, starting on the title page for my sketchbook.

My next few lessons weren't that bad either. They weren't all that amazing, but they definitely weren't bad. When the bell rang for lunch I let out a small sigh, unsure who I could eat with. I guessed I could always just go eat in a cafe somewhere nearby since I was able to leave school for lunch now that I was in sixth form.

Trailing out of my classroom, I raised my brows slightly when I heard someone calling out a familiar name. My gaze shot up to a girl a little further down the corridor, excitedly talking to the guy who's name had originally caught my attention.

I stopped in my tracks, staring over at the taller male. He looked so different from when he was younger, almost unrecognisable if it wasn't for the haircut. To put it simply, puberty could be a wonderful thing.

I was walking again before I even realised it, heading straight in the direction of the familiar face. The small blonde who was talking to him started walking off before I even got there, giving me a little more confidence as I caught up to him, before hesitantly speaking up.

"Um... Jean?" I mumbled quietly, my voice sounding a little unsure as I looked up at the other.

"Uh, yeah...?" Jean replied slowly, raising his brows as he looked back down at me, looking rather confused before his eyes quickly lit up with recognition. "Holy shit, Eren?"

I let out a small sigh of relief that I didn't know I was holding when Jean recognised me, giving a breathy chuckle. "Yup, that's me," I smiled, slowing down slightly so it was easier to talk. "Moved back in with my dad. God, you have no idea how nice it is to be back here. I-"

"Jean~!" Yet another familiar voice interrupted me, quick paced footsteps getting louder as someone ran towards us. We both stopped walking at the call, turning to look at the other who was just joining us, a faint smile returning to my face when I recognised it as the guy who had helped me in the morning.

"Hey, Marco," Jean replied, returning the smile that seemed to be permanent on the other's face with a small one of his own.

Marco, so I just found his name to be, glanced down at me for a moment with a small smile, before looking back up to Jean. "First day of sixth form! We're going down to the chip shop ((fries)) for lunch, right?"

"Yup, just like you planned five years ago," Jean replied with a small chuckle, before glancing down at me for a moment. "I'll see you around, Jaeger," he said as a farewell, before turning back to walk in the opposite direction with Marco, who gave me a small wave goodbye.

I'll see you around. Funny how that made me feel so welcomed when Marco had said it to me earlier, but now that Jean had repeated the same words I just felt like I was being rejected. I knew it was just being hopeful to think we'd become friends again, but I had thought he'd be at least a little curious to what had changed in my life over the past five years.

Then again, I don't think I should have ever expected anything more than just a simple greeting. We had both probably changed so much within this past years, and now we're basically strangers.

What a disappointment.


	2. First Day

After being abandoned by the only two people I had actually made an effort to talk to, I ended up walking around the corridors for a while until I eventually found the canteen ((cafeteria)). Although the school's food was no way near as appealing as anything from any local cafes, I decided I was too lazy to walk any more than I had too.

Thankfully the queue wasn't too long, with this specific one being only for years 11, 12 and 13. My next worry was finding somewhere to sit. The room was pretty full, which was surprising since it was actually sunny out for once. Holding the bagel I had bought loosely at my side, I made my way out of the school building and headed out to the school fields.

 

A few areas had people playing football ((soccer)) or rugby, but most parts were either empty or just had kids sitting down and chatting. I slumped down on the grass beside the back wall of the sports hall, sitting cross-legged and taking small bites of my bagel as I glanced around the area.

Being alone was something that I had grown used to after moving to Germany, and I'd be lying if I said I hated it. It can be nice to not have to keep track on track what everyone is saying to you, and to not have to figure out the right response. Staying in your own thoughts is just so easy, and I'm kind of glad that I get to stay there so often.

Of course, feeling lonely is also one of the worst feelings you can have. If you get left with your own thoughts for too long you can drive yourself insane, not to mention how unbelievably boring it is. This wasn't ever too much of a problem for me, though, since I was close to my mother and just hung out with her quite often.

I was snapped out of my thoughts when someone coughed to catch my attention, my gaze instantly lifting to glance over those standing around me. I wrinkled my nose slightly at the faint smell of marijuana, my gaze settling on the first person to speak.

The second shortest male of the group stood with his arms folded, an almost disgusted look showing on his face as he looked down at me. His light brown hair was styled into an undercut, and he looked me over before speaking. "Oi, newbie, you're kind of sitting in our spot."

I raised my brows at him, confused as to why they couldn't just sit in the empty spaces around me. It was obvious he was trying to intimidate me, but it seriously wasn't working.

A quiet hum came from the teen standing beside him, the faintest smirk tugging at his lips as I switched my gaze to him. He was the shortest of the group, yet still managed to look the most in control. "I'm sure it'd be fine if we let the kid sit with us just this once," he said, moving over to sit down beside me. "Don't worry, we'll make sure you feel welcome," he said quietly, his fingers brushing lightly over my thigh as he looked me over, his smirk still showing.

My gaze quickly flicked between him and his hand, and I felt myself wanting to shift away from him. Kid? This guy couldn't be more than a year older than me. 

The other four were quick to join him, forming a sort of circle on the ground. The only girl of the group sat on the other side of me, offering a small smile in my direction. The comforting action felt familiar, reminding me of how Marco had been around me before. 

I found myself shifting a little closer to her, attempting to give a small smile back before returning to a neutral expression as I glanced around the group.

None of them seemed to pay me much notice, too busy either eating their lunch or staring down at their phones. After a few moments of me glancing around in an odd silence, I felt a small tap on my shoulder from the girl sitting beside me, and I switched my attention to look back over at her. 

"Aren't you going to eat?" Her voice was soft, and she tilted her head slightly as she asked the question. 

I glanced down at the half-eaten bagel which I was still loosely holding onto, a small sigh passing my lips before taking a small bite out of it. It wasn't long until someone else was directing yet another question at me, and I looked across at who was speaking, still eating slowly as I listened.

His voice was stronger and more direct than the girl's, yet he still spoke in a way which was a lot more welcoming than the other two males who had spoken to me before. His long, blond hair was pulled back into a low bun, and he had a textbook sitting open in his lap.

"What's your name then, new kid?"

"Eren," I answered in a quiet mumble, inwardly hoping that they'd stop calling me kid now that they know my name. "Eren Jaeger..."

"I'm Petra," the girl piped up again, giving a small smile as I returned my gaze to her. "That's Erd. He's Gunther, the short- I mean, totally normal sized one is Levi, and the one trying to act like him is Oluo," she said, pointing to each individual as she introduced them, a faint grin forming on her lips at the end.

"I don't copy him," Oluo muttered coldly, glancing away from her with a small huff. 

"Right, 'course you don't" she mumbled sarcastically, rolling her eyes and giving a small shake of the head before returning her attention to me. "Just ignore how much of a douche he is. He thinks it makes him cool."

I gave a small nod, not bothering to give a verbal response as I continued to eat my lunch. I stayed silent as I ate, my gaze kept stuck to the ground and not paying much attention to the other's as they spoke amongst themselves. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I noted that Levi was staying silent as well and that apart from when he first sat down beside me he hadn't spoken or even showed any signs of emotion since. 

After finishing my lunch, I leant back against the wall of the building, glancing around the small group. It wasn't really any different to how it was back in Germany; when I wasn't eating alone, I would just sit in silence with another group of kids. Though they usually weren't the school druggies.

When the bell went to signify the end of lunch, the group slowly started packing up all of their stuff and getting up to head off to lessons. I tugged my backpack up over my shoulder as I stood up and started walking away from the other's, only pausing as I felt a small tug on my shirt sleeve and glancing over to see Petra standing by my side.

"You know, if you want to you can hang out with us tomorrow as well. It's been a while since someone new has joined the group," she offered, smiling sweetly as she dropped her hand back down to her side.

"Yeah, I guess. We'll see," I mumbled, giving a slight nod as I started walking again.

You'd think I'd be jumping at the opportunity to actually make some new friends, but I think would just rather be alone again. It wasn't even that I didn't like them because I genuinely thought most of them were alright. I guess I just had this idea in my head of how this year would turn out, and when that clearly wasn't going to happen I just sort of gave up altogether.

I do that to myself a lot. I always just plan everything out in my head, down to every last word in each conversation, and when it doesn't happen the way I wanted it to I end up being all disappointed. Still, maybe it's a good thing I can just stay alone again this year. I'll just do what I always do when I'm by myself; hide in the fictional universe by reading and playing video games and just simply hiding from reality.

After all, you almost never get disappointed in the fictional world. And, if you are, you can just switch to a different one.


	3. Warning

Maybe it was loneliness I was feeling, maybe it was knowing that I could actually be wanted, or maybe it was just that I was bored of watching my ex-best friend ignore me so easily as he laughed happily with his new best friend. Whatever the reason, when lunch came round on the second day back at school, I found myself walking back over to the area I had been just the day before.

When I got there, everyone else had already arrived and were sitting down eating their lunch. Petra was the first to notice me, a welcoming smile forming on her lips as she shuffled over slightly and patted the ground beside her, gesturing for me to sit down. I did so silently, giving the faintest smile back at her as I settled down in my place and began eating my lunch.

Okay, so maybe I was starting to enjoy the company. It was nice to have someone seem happy to see you after just being alone for the past five years of your life. Even though I wasn't really talking to any of them, or even bothering to listen to their own conversations, it was still nice to be around them.

Turns out a few of them were in some of my classes too, so whenever the bell went for my next lesson I was usually able to walk with one of them. Petra was in the most of my classes, which was a relief since I liked her the most out of everyone in the group.

Levi was in quite a few of my classes too, and even though I had found him sort of unsettling at first he was starting to grow on me. He didn't speak that much, so the conversations we did have were kept quite short. I didn't really mind, though, it was just nice to have someone to talk to.

I didn't really socialise much with them at lunch either, instead just listening to Petra's music with me having one earphone in and her using the other. This ended up being a common occurrence, as I ended up spending my lunch like this for the rest of the first week.

All in all, my first week back was actually pretty good. Sure, it wasn't how I originally thought it would turn out but maybe that was a good thing. Petra even asked me to hang out with them over the weekend, but I told her I was too busy with settling in and everything.

When I got to school on Monday morning the next week, I went straight to my locker to put in some of my heavier books and folders. Sixth form was turning out to be absolute hell for my back, my backpack feeling heavier than in any previous year. My sketchbook was especially difficult to deal with since it was A3, so I had to carry it around everywhere when it wasn't being stored in my locker.

I glanced up when someone leant back against the locker next to my own, my brows raising slightly in surprise when I saw it was Jean. "Uh, hey. Marco just wanted me to make sure you were settling in alright so, uh, yeah..."

I gave a small nod, closing my locker door to look at him properly, holding my folder close to my chest. "Right, yeah. I'm doing fine, thanks," I answered in a quiet mumble, giving another nod along with my words.

He gave a small nod of his own in return, tugging down his sleeves a little past his wrists. "Saw you hanging out with Levi's gang," he mumbled, moving his arms to cross them over his body. 

My brows raised slightly, and I gave another slow nod in response. "Yeah, they're a nice group of people," I shrugged, a small smile appearing on my face as I heard Levi call my name.

"Hey, Levi," I replied a little quieter as he approached us, turning to face him with my faint smile still on show. "I'll catch up with you in a sec'. Could you save me a seat in maths?"

"Sure, I'll see you in a bit," he nodded, glancing over at Jean briefly before looking back at me, the corners of his lips twitching up ever so slightly before he started walking away.

I watched him leave for a moment, lowering an arm to my side and tucking my folder under the other, before returning my attention to Jean. "Well, I appreciate the check up, but I'm pretty much settled in now. Tell Marco I say hi," I said before turning around to start walking away, pausing when I felt his hand grab a hold of my wrist and glancing back up at him.

"Dude, seriously, just watch out for that guy. He's a manipulator. I don't want you getting hurt," he warned quietly, avoiding eye contact as he quickly looked down at the floor. I stared up at him, trying to wrap my head around his sudden outburst.

Bullshit. No one in that group is even close to being manipulative, there's no way. Druggies? Definitely. Cocky assholes? One or two of them (literally just Oluo). But there's no way that they would purposefully hurt me, especially not Levi.

Jean was just jealous that I had actually made some friends.

I rolled my eyes, tugging my wrist out of his grip. "Thanks, but I don't think I need you looking out for me," I muttered, turning back around to start making my way up to maths.

Levi and his friends are probably the best thing that have happened to me for five years.

When I got there I went straight over to sit beside Levi, offering a faint smile before looking away again as I got out my books. He gave his best attempt at a smile back, which was basically just a small twitch at one corner of his mouth. Still, that seemed to be the extent of his expressions, it was basically a full on grin for him.

Instead of overthinking what Jean had said to me, I let myself lose any other thoughts as I concentrated on the work. In my old school, maths had actually been one of my favourite lessons, and I was pretty good at it too.

Easily working through the work we were given, I gladly ignored the world around me for the first hour of the day. Thankfully, my next lesson was art so as soon as the bell went at the end of the hour I quickly made my way to my second lesson.

Unsurprisingly I spent the rest of the morning working in silence, only bothering to speak when necessary. As soon as the bell went for lunch I went to the canteen to get the same food as usual before making my way to sit with Petra and the others.

Whilst on my way there I felt a small nudge at my side, and I small smile made its way onto my lips as I looked over to see Levi walking along beside me. He had his hands hidden in the pocket of his hoodie - which I was surprised he hadn't been told to take off yet - and kept his gaze directed up at me.

"You alright? You seemed a little more distant than usual this morning."

My brows raised slightly, a little surprised at the faint concern in his voice, before giving a slow nod in answer to his question. "I'm fine, just something someone said to me threw me off a bit," I said, shrugging a bit as I glanced down at the floor. 

"Really? I can sort them out for you if you want."

I gave a light chuckle, smiling faintly as I looked back up at him. "I don't think that's necessary," I mumbled, watching as he gave a simple nod in response and looked away again. I gave a soft hum, returning my gaze to the ground again. "Thanks for the offer, though. And, uh, thanks for putting up with me and being my friend or whatever," I added in a small mumble, not wanting to sound too sappy.

"No problem," he mumbled back, glancing up at me with a faint smirk. "Ah, so we're actually friends then? I just figured you were hanging out with us until you found someone else. I was very disappointed when Petra told me you couldn't be with us over the weekend because you were busy."

I felt a small blush spread across my cheeks, rubbing the nape of my neck a little as I looked back up at him. "Ah, well I just wanted to make sure I was settled in at home and stuff. I didn't want to miss hanging out with you."

Levi gave a small hum, stopping in his tracks as we went outside and glancing over in the direction of the field. "Well, I only have study session this afternoon so we can hang out now instead."

"Hang out as in like we always do at lunch? With the others?"

"Just us. We can go to my place," he shrugged, already starting to make his way to the school gates, pausing briefly to raise a brow at me. "Unless you don't want to?"

I blinked once, before quickly walking over to join him again. "I want to. I only had study session this afternoon as well anyway," I said, giving a small smile as we began walking in a peaceful silence to his house.

Levi wasn't a manipulator. In fact, he's been a better friend to me than anyone else had been for years.


	4. Don't Say No

The walk to Levi's house was a lot longer than I had originally expected it to be, but it wasn't so far away that it was necessary to take the bus. I was pretty surprised when we reached his house, looking up at it to see that it was much larger than my own.

I followed him up the driveway to his front door, waiting patiently as he dug through his pockets to find his keys. After both of us were inside with the door shut behind us he began taking off his shoes to place them near the entrance, and I quietly did so as well. We both left our bags there before going into the living room, sitting down on the sofa together.

I couldn't help but notice how organised the house was, glancing around and appreciating the aesthetically pleasing colour scheme. Eventually, gaze trailed off to look at the large flat screen TV opposite from where we were sitting.

"You want to watch a movie or something?" He asked, clearly in no need of an answer as he was already setting up Netflix. I watched the screen as he searched for a movie, my grin widening in excitement as he selected 'My Neighbour Totoro'.

"Oh, I love this movie!" I beamed cheerfully, glancing over at him with a wide smile. "I used to watch it all the time when I was younger."

"I know," he said simply, as though it were common knowledge, setting the controller down on the coffee table. 

I tilted my head slightly, my brows furrowing slightly in obvious confusion. "What do you mean? How did you know that?"

"Your friend told me," he answered, giving a slight wave of his hand to stop me from asking any more questions. "Now shush, the movie has already started."

I gave a faint nod, settling in my seat as I looked back over at the screen to switch my attention to the film. It was kind of nostalgic watching this movie again; I hadn't seen it since before I moved to Germany. I remember seeing it with Jean on my last night in town.

I think I prefer watching it now with Levi.

My attention was brought back to the short ravenette as he reached over to the coffee table, searching through a small box before pulling out a small bag. Of course, it was weed. I'm honestly surprised this was the first time I was seeing him smoke, considering that when I first met everyone in the group they all stank of the stuff.

He rolled up a couple of joints, and I couldn't help but wrinkle my nose slightly at the smell. After setting the box back down he finally looked up to meet my gaze, holding one of the joints out to me. "Here."

My gaze flicked between his hand and his eyes, biting lightly down on my inner lip in uncertainty. "Ah, I think I'm fine without, thanks," I mumbled quietly, finally settling my eyes on him.

He raised a brow slightly, before letting a small sigh pass past his lips and lowering his hand slightly. "Right, 'course. You probably haven't even smoked before, have you? Plus you barely even know me, I should really just be glad that you actually agreed to come over."

My brows raised slightly as I stared at him, before finally giving a quiet sigh and reaching over to gently take the joint out of his hold. The corners of his mouth twitched slightly upwards into a faint grin, and he reached over to light it for me. 

Second week and I was already one of the school druggies. Great.

Somehow I ended up lying down on the sofa with my head in his lap, his fingers running thoughtlessly through my hair as we watched the movie. I honestly wasn't paying too much attention to the film at this point, though I did giggle a lot during the scenes where I was actually listening, instead concentrating on the calming touch of the other's fingers and how the smell of weed was slowly starting to become stronger in the large room.

I turned my head slightly so I was looking up at him, blowing out smoke in his direction and letting out a soft giggle as he looked down at me. "Damn brat," he mumbled quietly, only making me giggle more as I reached up to gently poke his cheek.

He rolled his eyes but didn't try to hide the faint smile plastered on his face. He carefully grabbed onto my shoulders, lifting me to sit up straight and shifting me so my legs were going across his lap. It was only when I started carelessly playing with his hair that he let out a faint sigh, taking the joint out of my other hand and lifting it up to his own lips instead. "I think that's enough for you," he mumbled quietly, careful not to blow any smoke in my direction.

I pouted slightly, giving a childish huff as I dropped my arms down to my sides. I reached over to grab his free hand, staring down at it as I gently prodded at his fingers. At this point I had completely lost track of time, just silently staring down at his palm for what could have been either seconds or minutes on end. 

I didn't even realise that the movie had finished until Levi pointed it out, giving my forehead a gentle flick to gain my attention. "Get up, kid. I've gotta do some work now."

"But Levi~" I whined, pouting out my lower lip slightly as I sat up a little straighter. "You're kicking me out? Already?"

He rolled his eyes, tugging his hand out of my loose grip. "Yes. I have shit to do. Unless you actually want me to fail my classes I suggest you do as I ask," he mumbled, giving a quiet sigh when I didn't move from my position. "You can always just come back again tomorrow."

A small squeal of excitement made its way out of me, my smile widening as I gave a small nod. I got up from the sofa, giving a small wave to him before making my way out of his home, ignoring the slight disappointment that I couldn't stay with him longer.

Of course, now my problem was getting rid of this smell before I get home. Well, then again that shouldn't be too much of a worry. My dad usually ends up working late anyway.

When lunch time rolled around the next day at school I went to the fields, just as usual, sitting down in the same place as I had before. I glanced around the group, a little confused when my eyes didn't come across a certain shorty. Looking back over at Petra, I gave her a small nudge. "Where's Levi?"

She gave a small shrug, shuffling a little closer so it was easier to talk. "Not sure. I haven't seen him all morning," she admitted, before taking a small bite out of her sandwich. "Hey, where were you two yesterday anyway?"

"Right, thanks," I nodded, a small smile automatically appearing on my face as I thought back to the day before. "Oh, nowhere," I answered, giving a light shrug as I continued to eat my own lunch.

My attention was taken to my phone as I felt it vibrate in my pocket, taking me a little by surprise since no one ever texted me. I think the only people who actually knew my number are my parents.

Using my free hand to pull out my phone, I felt my confusion grow further as I read a text message that had been signed by Levi. I briefly considered responding by asking how the hell he had gotten my number but was quickly interrupted when the girl sitting beside me squealed directly next to my ear. 

"I knew it! You and Levi were hanging out together yesterday," she squealed, smiling widely as she gave me a small nudge.

I rolled my eyes, a faint smile forming on my own lips. "Yeah, well neither of us had any actual classes to go to so..." I trailed off, giving a small shrug before glancing back down at my phone.

"So? Look, he's asking you to meet him after school," she exclaimed, gesturing to my phone screen. "Maybe he likes you," she teased, giving a small giggle.

"I doubt that," he mumbled quietly, ignoring the faint blush spreading across my cheeks and glancing back up to look at her. "Anyway, I'm kind of busy with artwork. I don't think I'll have time to meet up with him-"

"What? You have to meet up with him! You can't just say no to Levi."

Sighing, I looked back down at my phone and started to type. "I guess I can finish off my art another time," I mumbled, texting Levi to say I could meet him a little after school finished.

Turns out that wasn't good enough for him.

'I've got shit to do too. Meet me at the skatepark in an hour. Don't be late.' -L

Damn it.

"Hey, Petra, do you mind taking notes for me during last lesson? I've got somewhere else to be."


	5. Helping

I could already see Levi getting ready to leave the skatepark even before I had reached it. I started jogging over towards him, calling out his name to get him to stop walking away. He glanced back to look at me, his expression showing no emotion as he stopped in his tracks.

"You're late," he muttered, looking over me as I bent over slightly to catch my breath.

"Only by a few minutes," I mumbled quietly, looking back down at him as I straightened up. "I can't believe you were going to leave after only waiting just a few minutes."

Saying that was definitely a mistake. As soon as the words had left my mouth, Levi's brows shot straight up in a surprised and offended manner. "I've spent a lot of time in the past waiting for people who never showed up. You either show up on time or don't agree to meet me in the first place."

I was going to say something about how he basically made me come to meet him in the first place but quickly decided against it. Instead, I just bit lightly down on my lower lip before mumbling what I knew he wanted to hear. "Sorry."

He just gave a slight nod in response, shoving his hands in his pockets and glancing around the area before starting to walk again, gesturing for me to follow him. I quickly did as he wanted, almost surprised at how fast I had to walk to keep up with him considering his height.

"Where are we going exactly?"

"To a friend's house. I need you to help me out with something."

I tilted my head in slight curiosity, unsure whether or not to ask for further details. "What do you need help with?"

"I'll tell you when we get there. God, Jaeger, It's like you don't trust me or something," he mumbled, pausing for a moment before glancing over, pulling a face that made me feel almost guilty for questioning him. "You do trust me, don't you?"

"Of course, I do!" I assured him, letting a small sigh past my lips as he looked straight ahead again, seeming to be pleased with my answer.

Thinking about it honestly, I'm not sure if I really do trust him. I mean, I don't have any reasons to not trust him and I'm certainly not worried about anything that he might do. It's just that I also don't have any real reasons to trust him either. We have only known each other for just over a week, after all.

And there's also what Jean said about him...

'Just watch out for that guy. He's a manipulator.'

Fuck, I've got to stop thinking about that. Levi has given me no reason to distrust him, and I'm not going to let some dumb comment change my opinion on him.

I quickly snapped back into reality as Levi grabbed my wrist to tug me around a corner and down the driveway of what I assume was his friend's house. The house was just as large and magnificent as Levi's, and I started to wonder if all of his friends were from wealthy families.

He let go of me when we reached the front door, crouching down a bit as he searched under the many plant pots. After a few moments of looking, he stood up straight again with a small smirk showing as he held a small key in his right hand.

"Does your friend know we're coming?" I asked hesitantly, my voice a little quieter than usual.

He didn't respond, just giving a small wave of his hand after opening the door to tell me to come inside. I was quick to comply, following him inside and waiting for him to close the door before trailing behind him upstairs. 

"Levi," I said, hoping for an answer to my previous question as he led me into a bedroom.

"Eren, for fucks sake just shut up already. No, he doesn't know we're coming. And he's not going to know that we've been here either," he said, starting to search through some drawers. "If you must know, I'm actually trying to get something of mine back from him. He's not even really my friend."

My brows shot up in confusion and slight shock, unsure what exactly was happening. "What? But you said earlier that he was. Who the fuck is he then?"

Levi quickly spun back around to look at me, his eyes narrowing as he glared over in my direction. "Are you accusing me of lying? Listen here, if there is one thing I hate most in this world it's liars. I would never tell you anything but the truth."

"But you did lie to me! You said earlier that we were just visiting a friend, and now you're stealing from some random stranger."

"I am not stealing from him and I did not lie to you!" He shouted, the tone of his voice causing me to flinch back slightly. "He was my friend but we had a fight, and I am just getting something of mine back," he insisted, his face suddenly contorting to one of hurt. "I can't believe you really don't trust me."

I let out a small sigh, biting down on my lower lip and looking down at the ground out of guilt. "I'm sorry. Really, I didn't mean to..." I sighed again, raising my gaze to meet his own. "I do trust you, I promise."

He simply looked away again, clearly unsure whether or not to believe me. "Whatever," he mumbled quietly, continuing to search through the drawers once more.

I watched him for a while in silence before glancing around the room myself, taking an interest in a few printed out photos that were spread across the desk. Picking them up, I started looking through them, stopping when I saw one of Levi.

If the photo was anything to go by, they were definitely much more than just friends in the past. The image was of Levi and a much taller blonde, who I assumed to be the ex 'friend', kissing on a park bench. It was actually kind of cute, and I couldn't help but feel jealous of how happy they looked together.

I also couldn't help but feel that there was still a lot more that Levi wasn't telling me.

I quickly put the photo at the back of the pile, continuing to look through the rest. "Is this guy one of your friends too?" I showed a photo to Levi, pointing to a slightly older looking male with ash-blonde hair with slight stubble.

Levi gave a small shake of his head, his eyes kept on the photo as he spoke. "The shorter blonde is the guy who lives here - Erwin - I don't know who the other one is," he said, shrugging a bit before looking back down at the drawers. A small smirk formed on his lips as he found whatever he was looking for, and he quickly shut all of the drawers and shoved a brown envelope into his backpack.

"Put those photos back wherever you found them, kid. We need to go before Bushy-Brows gets back," he ordered, grabbing a pack of cigarettes from Erwin's bedside table on his way out of the room.

I quickly did as he said before following him down the stairs and out of the house, fiddling with the ends of my sleeves as he locked the front door before returning the spare key to its original spot. He held the tobacco filled cigarette between his pale lips, lighting it as we made our way back down the driveway.

I trailed along beside him, watching him in silence for a few moments. There were so many more questions that I wanted answers to, but I knew it was unlikely that he'd actually answer any of them. It was still kind of surprising that he had answered me when I asked about the guy in the photo.

Speaking of which, it almost looked like there was a hint of jealousy showing when Levi saw the image. It wasn't like there was anything romantic going on between them in that photo; they were just sitting on a bench like any normal couple of friends. 

Maybe he just missed hanging out with him; I can certainly relate.

Levi gave me a small nudge with his elbow, returning me to reality as I glanced back over at him. "I have to go sort something out. I'll see you tomorrow," he mumbled, blowing out some smoke before turning on his heal and starting to walk away.

I was about to ask why he was leaving so soon, and why it was even necessary for me to meet him in the first place, but simply decided to brush it off. He was busy, after all, and I guess I should just be glad he asked me to come along for company in the first place.

"See you tomorrow," I mumbled back in a quiet voice, watching him leave for a few moments before turning around to start walking home myself.


	6. Favours

I never did end up seeing Levi the next day. I didn't see him the day after that either. In fact, nobody else had seen him around since before I went over to his house. When I asked Petra and the other's they all said that they hadn't seen him for over a week.

It was weird how easy it was for him to just disappear like that, and nobody really felt like questioning him for it either. I did briefly consider at least calling him, but I was kind of worried that he'd just get annoyed that I had disturbed him. 

Fortunately, Petra was also a pretty close friend of mine so I was able to spend the rest of the week with her. When I wasn't at school, I was at home either reading or doing more of my art coursework. It was Sunday afternoon and I was just about to start working on another piece in my sketchbook when I heard my phone go off.

I'm not sure whether it was relief or annoyance that I was feeling when I saw that it was a text from Levi. Of course, I was glad that he had finally reappeared, but it sort of irritated me that he had disappeared in the first place.

'Come to my house in half an hour. If you're late I'll be locking the door.' -L

Well, guess I'll have to continue with my art assignment another time.

I packed up my equipment and left the house immediately, determined to show up on time. I had been late meeting Levi before, and even though it was only by a few minutes his reaction made me sure not to be late again in the future.

In fact, I arrived a few minutes early. I could've gotten there even earlier, but I decided to take my time considering he'd probably get annoyed at me for being early as well. Actually, I was so determined to not give him a reason to get irritated with me that I stared down at the time on my phone and waited until it was the exact time before ringing his doorbell.

Levi opened the door only seconds after I had rung the doorbell, offering a small smile as he laid eyes on me. "Glad to see you on time for once," he mumbled, the corners of his lips twitching up into a small smile. "Come on, we shouldn't waist a day like this inside. How about we just go for a walk down the beach?"

The question was obviously a rhetorical one. Even if I did suggest something else the chances of him listening to me were slim. I simply gave a small nod in return, watching as he locked the front door before we both started walking down his driveway.

I wasn't even completely sure what he was on about; sure the weather was okay, but it wasn't exactly anything special. Well, then again, it was Britain we were living in. It was honestly just a miracle that it was dry for once.

I glanced over at him as we walked along the side of the road, making our way over in the direction of the beach. I couldn't help but notice how he seemed to be a little closer to me than usual, and that the thought of him wanting to be closer than usual brought a small smile to my lips.

He glanced up at me for a moment, raising a brow when he caught my staring down at him. I looked away as soon as our eyes met, not wanting to make the silence awkward and not wanting to answer any of his questions on why I was watching him. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him roll his eyes, though his expression remained neutral as he looked straight ahead once more. His hands were kept in his pockets, just like usual.

When we actually got near the beach, he didn't bother walking around to go down the steps that lead onto the sand. Instead, he jumped down onto the sand from the two-meter drop, landing effortlessly on his feet.

Unsurprisingly, my own landing was a little less graceful. The drop down itself was rather hesitant, and I almost lost my balance and toppled forward when I landed.

Almost.

I definitely would have ended up face-first in the sand if Levi hadn't held onto me the moment my feet were on the ground, his arm wrapped firmly around my to keep my steady. I could feel the heat already rising to my cheeks, and the blush only deepened as he leant in closer to whisper in my ear.

"Careful, Eren. Don't want you getting hurt now, do we?"

His voice was low, and I could feel his breath tickling my ear as he spoke. I couldn't even think of a decent response, only managing to mumble a simple "Thank you" in return for his help.

When he finally pulled away (not that I really wanted him to), I couldn't help but notice the faint smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth. Why he was smirking, I wasn't completely sure. Chances were that he was amused of how easily flustered he could make me.

I tugged my sleeves down past my wrists as we started walking again, looking down at the sand as I fiddled with the ends of the soft fabric. We walked in silence for a few minutes, simply taking in our surroundings instead of feeling the need to make an actual conversation.

Thankfully, there weren't too many people on the beach, so I was able to enjoy the peaceful silence instead of having to listen to children screaming from joy in the distance. After a while of walking, I stopped for a moment as Levi tugged my sleeve before he gently pulled me over in a different direction. 

He turned back around so we were facing the ocean, sitting down on the sand and carefully tugging my down to sit beside him. I sat with my legs crossed and my hands in my lap, keeping my gaze set straight ahead.

Levi shuffled a little closer to me, the action bringing the faintest smile to my lips, and leant back slightly with his hands resting on the ground behind him. The silence continued for a few moments as we both stared off into the ocean before he spoke up again and looked over to meet my gaze.

"You know, the ocean actually kind of reminds me of your eyes," he mumbled quietly, biting on the inside of his lip in what I took to be an almost nervous fashion.

I tilted my head slightly, unsure whether or not to take his comment as a compliment. "What do you mean? They're not even the same colour..."

He gave a small shake of his head, glancing over at the ocean for a moment before looking back at me. "I don't mean by colour," he mumbled, leaning a little closer and resting his hand on my cheek, looking my right in the eyes.

"I mean because they're both so... mysterious. They draw you in to take a closer look, and everything that you find is just so beautiful. They're so gorgeous, Eren. Everything about you is gorgeous."

My cheeks starting turning pink the moment his hand rested against my skin, the shade going even darker as he continued to speak. Being called gorgeous and beautiful, especially by some like Levi, made my stomach feel as though there were butterflies fluttering about the inside of it.

I didn't even attempt to reply, knowing that I'd only end up making a fool of myself by stumbling on my words. Instead, I just stayed silent, leaning slightly into his gentle touch and looking him back in the eyes. 

He leant in a little closer, and my heart sped up as I could feel his warm breath against my lips. I knew exactly what I wanted to do in that moment, but there was no possible way I could bring myself to do it. If it were any other person I may have at least made an attempt, but this was Levi and I knew he wanted to stay completely in control of the situation.

I stared down at him, waiting for him to make a move by closing the little space that was left between us. Just as it looked as though he was about to, the hope that had been building up inside of me was broken down as we heard his phone go off in his pocket.

For a split second, I thought he might ignore it, but that idea was also beaten down as he pulled away to look down at his phone screen almost immediately after it went off. Chewing lightly on the inside of my lip, I watched him nervously as I tried my best to ignore the embarrassment starting to build up inside me.

He was already standing up as soon as he had read whatever message had been sent his way, not even bothering to help me get up. "I have to go sort something out," he muttered, starting to walk away before pausing.

I had only just stood up myself when he turned back around to speak to me again. For a brief moment, I thought he could be coming back to finish off what he was about to do before his phone went off, and a small smile made its way onto my features as he whispered my name.

"Hey, Eren..." He paused for a moment, his eyes flicking over my face as he moved a little closer. "Would you mind doing a favour for me? I'm supposed to be meeting my dealer at half past eight tonight, but I won't be able to make it. Think you could go instead?"

My smile switched into a small frown, my brows furrowing as he made he request. "What? Can't you get one of the others to do it?"

That didn't seem to be the answer he was looking for because as soon as the words had left me his expression also turned to one of annoyance. "Why won't you just do it? Christ, Jaeger, I thought you were my friend," he muttered, before letting out a small sigh and pinching the bridge of his nose. 

"Fuck, okay I'm sorry," he carried on, looking back at me once more. "Please, it won't even be much trouble I swear. I've already paid for everything, you just need to go down to the small clearing behind the skatepark to meet the guy and pick the stuff up," he said in a more relaxing tone, taking one of my hands in his own and giving it an encouraging squeeze. "I promise it will only take a few minutes. Please, for me?"

I inwardly groaned, not wanting to give in. Of course, I did, though. After all, you can't say no to Levi.

"Alright, alright. I'll do it," I promised, a small sigh escaping me.

"Great," he grinned, letting go of my hand the moment I had agreed to help him out. "Oh, and I heard they're actually sending someone different instead, so just say you're me okay? I'll just get it from you tomorrow, yeah? Later," he added in quickly, not even bothering to wave me goodbye as he spun around on his heel and started walking off in the opposite direction.

Yeah, nobody can say no to Levi Ackerman.


	7. Knocked Up

It was 8:25, and instead of being at home finishing off homework I was standing out in the cold behind a druggy-filled skatepark. Okay, so maybe I was exaggerating a little bit but come on, stereotypes exist for a reason.

Besides, I was waiting for a drug dealer. Why? I have no idea. Well, I do; Levi was unable to show up himself and I'm too weak to say no. I just hoped that he was being honest when he said that he wouldn't take too long.

I stared down at my phone in an attempt to keep myself busy for the next five minutes, leaning back against the wall that separated the clearing from the skatepark and trying to hold myself back from shivering. I was soon snapped back to reality as I heard footsteps coming towards me, lifting my gaze and shoving my phone back into my pocket.

The stranger was a lot taller than me but in the dark lighting, I couldn't see much else of his appearance. He stopped in his tracks when he came to about a meter away from me, his tone low when he spoke up. "You Levi Ackerman?"

I was about to automatically say no when I remembered Levi telling me to just pretend to be him, and managed to stop myself just in time. "Uh, yeah, that's me," I answered, giving a small nod as I spoke. "You have the stuff?" God, I didn't even know what I was getting.

He gave a dark chuckle in response, his lips curling up into a small smirk. "Right, about that, there's been a slight change in plans," he said, taking a step closer towards me. The small movement got him to shift into slightly better lighting, and I looked at him in detail as I started noticing how familiar he looked.

Before I had time to think properly he gave a sudden movement, pushing me back against the wall and pinning my hands above my head. I gave a small whimper when I felt cold metal held up against my neck, pressing myself further back against the wall in an attempt to lessen the pain.

He leant in a little closer, looking me over and standing so close I could feel his breath against my skin. "Boss tells me you have something of his. I suggest you give it back before I have to take things any further."

What the fuck could Levi have stolen from him that would be so important? Why-

Shit.

I knew exactly where I recognised him from. He was in one of the photos at Erwin's place. Was it possible that the item Levi had supposedly stolen was whatever was in the envelope he took a few days ago?

If it was, then why did Levi say he was just taking back what was originally his?

Fuck, why was I even thinking about this so much right now? My current priority was getting the fuck out of here; I can think about the details later.

I struggled to breathe as he pressed the knife deeper against my skin, bringing a wider smirk to his face. My heart felt like it was going to beat straight out of my chest as I stared up at him in fear, biting harshly down on my lower lip.

He sniffed the side of my neck, chuckling darkly before moving up to whisper in my ear. "I can basically smell the fear radiating off of you. And to think that I was warned to be careful around you." He tightened his hold on my wrists, his nails digging in even further than the blade was.

"I'm not Levi Ackerman!" I gasped out, knowing that Levi would kill me for bailing out on this but way too terrified to care. 

He rolled his eyes, and I let out a small sigh of relief as he removed the knife from my neck. My relief was quickly replaced with fear as he grabbed a hold of my shirt, pulling me towards him a bit before slamming me back against the wall again.

"Nice try, kid. I honestly couldn't care less about who you say you are, all I know is that I need to get something back and that you know what that something is."

"I don't know what you're talking about, I-"

I was interrupted as he grabbed a fistful of my hair, wasting no time in throwing a punch which I was sure had split my lip open. Before I even had enough time to try to fight him off with my now-free arms he had grabbed a hold of them once more, pulling me away from the wall and twisting them behind my back.

"You have twenty-four hours until you have to meet me here again. This time, you better have what I want," he warned, letting go of my arms and kicking my feet from underneath me causing me to fall to the ground heavily. A shot of pain was sent through me as I hit my back, and I didn't bother even attempting to move.

"Just remember, I know what you look like now."

And then he was walking away, leaving me alone to lie on the ground in pain. The whole situation still didn't seem to have fully caught up with me yet, and I was left feeling dizzy and confused.

I moved my hands up to drag them through my hair, letting out a shaky breath as I tried to concentrate on what to do next. My head was spinning and I was finding it difficult to think straight, and there was only one thing that came to mind.

Levi.

I had to go and find him. He could help me. He could take care of me and then help me sort out the whole twenty-four hour deal with the sort-of-stranger.

I slowly sat up, resting my head in my hands for a few moments and concentrating on my breathing before finally starting to stand up. My body ached badly and my jaw felt numb but I knew it didn't matter because I just had to get back to Levi's.

That's the only thing that I thought for the whole walk there, and it helped distract me from the aching in my head. I tried calling him a few times but it just went straight to voicemail, so I was left to hope that he would actually be home when I got there. 

Relief flooded through me when he opened up the front door after I had rung the doorbell so many times, and I had to hold myself back from pulling him into a tight hold for comfort. 

He raised his brows when he saw me, looking me up and down and leaning against the doorframe. "You look like hell," he mumbled lowly.

"Yeah, well I uh-" For whatever reason I was finding it difficult on what to say, and I looked down to the ground in an awkward attempt to get the words out easier. "The guy who met me ended up beating me up. He said you stole something from Erwin..."

Levi let out a small sigh, and before I could look back up at him he had stepped forward to wrap his arms around me. I wasted no time in throwing my arms around him to hold him even closer, biting down on my lower lip to hold back the whimpers threatening to come out.

"I'm so sorry," he mumbled quietly, tugging me down slightly so we were closer to the same height, leaning up to my ear before speaking once more. "I honestly didn't think that you'd be this stupid."

I pulled back to look at him, taking a step back and dropping my arms back down to my sides. "W-what?" I choked out, reaching up to wipe my eyes with the back of my sleeves. 

A small smirk tugged at his lips as he leant back against the doorframe once more. "You didn't really believe that what I took from Erwin the other day was actually mine, did you?"

I stared down at him, clearly confused as he rolled his eyes before explaining further. "I knew that he was sending out someone to kick my ass for stealing his shit, and I really wasn't in the mood to go and fight them myself so I sent you," he stated simply, giving a small shrug at the end of it.

"Did you seriously think that I cared about you at all?" I was frozen in place, trying to say something in return but unable to think of anything at all. Somehow, his words were hurting more than the bruises showing up over my body. "Jesus, kid. You've gotta learn not to be so gullible."

And with that he went back inside and shut the front door in my face, leaving me to stand like a deer in headlights just outside his house. When I finally snapped myself back into reality enough to actually start moving, I realised that my cheeks were damp from tears.

I quickly spun around on my heel, desperate to get as far away from him as possible. I started picking up my pace until I was practically running home, having to keep wiping at my eyes as the salted water blurred my vision.

Fuck, why didn't I see this coming? I should have known this would happen. How could I have even expected anything different?

Jean was right about him, and yet I still ignored his warning.

I'm a fucking idiot.


	8. 'Jeanie'

I don't remember ever falling asleep last night, but since I was actually being woken up by the sound of my alarm I could only assume that I had. It didn't feel like it, though, as I was practically falling asleep as I tiredly started putting on my school uniform.

In all honesty, school was the last place I wanted to be right now, and who the fuck could blame me? One of the only people who I had actually considered to be my friend turned out to be a lying piece of crap, and to make it worse I had actually been warned about it weeks ago.

It wasn't just the whole Levi situation that had left me too drained to want to go anywhere but my bed. As well as the emotional wounds, the physical ones that I had were also having an effect. My back ached most of the time that I made any movement at all, and I could only be thankful that the pain wasn't as bad as it could've been.

As much as I wanted to spend all day lying in bed, I knew that doing so would be admitting defeat. I was not one to back down from a challenge and I refused to let that asshole fuck with my emotions. Or, at the very least, I refused to let him know that he had fucked with my emotions.

So, I got my ass to school and tried to treat the day just like any other. Well, I obviously couldn't hang out with the people I usually did, so by 'any other day' I mean like the ones I had in school back in Germany.

This basically consisted of me ignoring everybody all day and keeping my earphones in on full blast whenever possible. Thankfully, I had art all morning so keeping my earphones in was just like any other usual art lesson for me. It was also convenient as nobody from Levi's group were in my class, so, avoiding them was pretty easy.

And thanks to the fact that I was in sixth form, avoiding them at lunch was pretty easy too. I knew where they also spent their time anyway, but being in sixth form gave me the ability to be in a completely different building to them entirely.

It also meant that I could eat something other than the school's crappy bagels for lunch.

As soon as the bell went for lunch I was up and out of the classroom before I had any idea where I was heading. The nearest place to get food was probably the fish and chip shop around the corner, and I could probably find somewhere nearby to sit and eat.

The shop was rather small, with a small seating area simply for when waiting for your food. I sat down there after ordering my food, knowing that it would take a while for the fish to be ready. I stared down at my phone as I waited, scrolling through Tumblr simply for something to do.

I glanced up when I heard the shop door open before immediately looking back down again after seeing it was someone I knew. It wasn't Levi or any of his friends, thank God, but it was still someone who I'd rather ignore simply for the fact that I wanted to be left alone.

Unsurprisingly, though, that didn't seem to be what was going to happen.

"Eren?" A small sigh passed my lips, and I looked back up again to meet his gaze. Marco's eyes widened slightly when he looked at me, and I raised a brow to silently ask why.

Jean was just finishing ordering before turning around and looking at me as well, his expression similar to Marco's though not as concerned. "The fuck happened to you?"

Ah, right, I hadn't even properly looked in the mirror ever since the day before. Without replying, I looked back down at my phone and opened up the camera app to use as a mirror.

The marks from the injuries honestly didn't look all that bad. Okay, so the scar left on my neck from the knife was a little concerning but it wasn't that bad. It was how the rest of my face looked that showed just how awful I felt, and I let out a small sigh of annoyance that I hadn't checked how I looked before now.

The dark circles under my eyes showed just how tired I was, making me think that I got even less sleep than I had originally thought. Even my hair itself was a mess, and thinking back to this morning I'm not sure if I even made an attempt at brushing it.

"I, uh, didn't get much sleep," I finally mumbled back, putting my phone back down and look at Marco who was now sitting beside me.

Jean rolled his eyes, moving to sit down next to Marco and leaning over slightly, pointing at my neck. "Right, but I don't think you get giant cuts on your neck from not getting enough sleep."

"Did someone hurt you?" Marco gasped out, the amount of concern showing in his expression surprising me a little.

"No," I muttered bluntly, not wanting to go into detail on what happened.

"But-"

"Fish and chips for Eren," the guy behind the till called out, and I let out a small sigh of relief that I was able to make my escape.

I mumbled a small thank you and was almost out of the door before I was stopped once more by Marco, and I turned around to face him as he spoke to me. "Why don't you have lunch with us?"

I raised my brows, hesitant on what to say. Part of me wanted to have lunch with them, but I still just sort of wanted to be alone. "I don't want to intrude..."

Jean rolled his eyes, going over to get his own food before turning back to face me. "Christ, Jaeger. We're not asking you to fucking marry us. Just come sit with us."

Marco was standing too now, offering a small smile as he moved to hold the door open for me and Jean. I returned the small gesture, finally giving in and nodding a bit. "Okay..."

"Great!" He beamed, waiting until we were out of the shop before closing the door gently behind him. I moved so I wasn't in the middle, trailing a little behind them as they made their way to wherever they wanted to eat. I really didn't care where it was, as long as it wasn't at school.

Thankfully, the two turned off in the opposite direction of the school building and I was almost surprised when we ended up at the local park ((playground)). A small smile made its way onto my lips as I realised I had gone here a lot with Jean when I was younger, and I couldn't help but wonder if he ever thought back to those memories when he came here.

Probably not.

We all climbed up the steps to sit on top of the large climbing frame, sitting down on the platform beside the top of the slide. I sat with my legs crossed, placing the paper-wrapped fish and chips in my lap and starting to pick some out.

Marco sat down beside me, the welcoming smile still plastered on his face, and Jean opposite the both of us. I ate my food in silence, leaving the others to do all the talking as I kept my gaze on my food.

I only looked up again when Jean reached over to take some of my chips, a small grin on his face as I raised my brows at him. I rolled my eyes and put the stylophone box down in front of him, not wanting to eat much more anyway. "Good to know you haven't changed then. You always were eating my food."

"Only because you never finished it," he grinned, bringing the box up onto his lap to continue eating. I grinned back at him, relieved that he wasn't completely ignoring how we used to be.

After a moment I realised that Marco must be somewhat confused, and looked over at him to explain. "Um, I used to live here before I moved away..."

Marco gave a small chuckle, his smile widening slightly. "I know. Little Jeanie used to talk about you all the time, and then again when you moved back-"

"Marco!" Jean whined, sending him a look to tell him to stop talking. I just gave a small chuckle, covering my mouth with the palm of my hand to hide the wide grin appearing.

"His mum still calls him that?" I asked, giving another soft chuckle when Jean groaned in annoyance.

"Yup, I'm pretty sure she won't ever stop calling him that," he grinned, chuckling along with me.

"You guys are assholes," Jean huffed, only causing us to laugh even more.

"Whatever you say, Jeanie," I giggled, giving a small squeal as he threw one of the chips at me. "Hey! Now who's the asshole," I said light-heartedly, the faint smile still showing on my face.

"Still you two," he replied, though a faint smile was starting to make its way onto his expression as well. "Anyway, we should probably start heading back now. Lunch will be over soon," he said, standing up and scrunching the rubbish ((trash)) up into a ball.

Marco and I nodded, though instead of standing up we both exchanged a look before shuffling over to the slide. Jean rolled his eyes but shuffled over so he could go down after us.

After each of us were down the slide we started making our way back to the school, putting our rubbish in the bin ((trash can)) on the way out. Just like last time I walked at the side, with Jean in the middle, except I was now actually engaging in conversation.

Marco gave a small hum as he took out his phone after it went off, giving a small groan as he looked at the text. "Ah, sugar," he muttered under his breath, lifting his gaze again to look at Jean. "Something has come up, I don't think I'll be able to help you after school," he sighed, his expression looking apologetic.

Jean groaned quietly, before giving a slight nod. "It's fine. It'll just take longer, no biggie."

"I'm sorry," he mumbled, before glancing over at me and smiling slightly. "Oh, Eren can help you!"

I raised my brows slightly, flicking my gaze between the two before nodding slowly. "Um, sure I guess... What exactly am I helping you with?" I asked, settling my gaze on Jean.

"Just repainting my bedroom," he answered simply, smiling a little as I nodded again. "Thanks, Jaeger. Meet me in the foyer at the end of the day so we can catch the school bus together?"

"Yeah, sure," I nodded, giving a small smile back. "I'll see you then."


	9. Comfort

Avoiding Levi's friends became a lot more difficult during the afternoon since I actually had lessons with them. Thankfully, I didn't actually have any with Levi himself. I felt kind of bad ignoring them, but I wasn't sure if they were just like Levi. Either way, it was clear he hadn't told them what had happened considering Petra kept trying to get me to talk to her.

It was a relief when the bell rang to signal that it was the end of the day, and I was excited to forget about everything between me and Levi and just hang out with Jean for a bit. He was already in the school's reception when I got there, and I gave a small smile upon seeing him which he returned soon after.

We walked in silence out of the building, and I let him lead me to whichever bus we were going to be catching. I had never actually been on a school bus since I've always lived in walking distance of my schools. And, from this first-time experience, I can easily say that it's not something I would like to do again.

We sat at the back, where most of the other older kids sat. They were fine since most of them just listened to music and stayed silent.

However, the back of the bus is also where the most annoying year sevens sit. So, instead of engaging in actual conversation with Jean, I spent the entire bus journey listening to an eleven-year-old scream out the lyrics to 'What does the fox say?'

Literally, everyone looked like they wanted to snap his neck in half, Including the bus driver.I mean, he could have at least sang something relevant. Christ, that song must be at least two years old.

When we reached Jean's stop he gave me a small nudge, and I let out a small sigh of relief at the realisation that I could get off this moving box of hell. As soon as we were off the bus I felt myself relax, thankful for the sort of peace. 

We both stayed silent as we made our way to Jean's house, which was thankfully just across the road from where we got off the bus. I glanced around once we were inside, Jean closing the door behind us. It had a similar layout to the house I lived in back in Germany, just an average sized two story house.

"Ma, I'm back!" He called, poking his head round into the living room. "I, uh... Eren's with me."

I stood awkwardly to the side of him, poking my head in just a bit as he mentioned my name. His mother's features seemed to light up as she saw me, and she came over to the both of us with a wide grin on her face.

"Eren! I haven't seen you in forever!" She grinned, wrapping her arms around me and pulling me into a short and awkward hug before pulling back slightly, her hands resting on my shoulders. "I've been excited to see you again since little Jeanie told me you were back."

I grinned slightly at Jean's nickname, glancing over to look at him and chuckling a little at his annoyed expression before looking back at his mother. "Um, hey, it's lovely to see you too, Miss Kirstein. How are you?"

She gave a soft chuckle, returning her hands back down to her sides. "Oh, Eren. You know you don't have to use such formalities with me; Just call me Linda!" She smiled, giving another chuckle at my awkward nod. "Ah, you've grown so much since I last saw you-"

"Okay, ma, we kind of have to do something now," Jean interrupted her, holding onto my wrist to tug me away from her.

"Oh, alright. You two have fun," she smiled, giving a small wave before I was dragged away from her. 

Jean quickly led me upstairs, not letting go of my wrist until we were in his bedroom. It was pretty empty, the parts of the floor already covered in newspaper in case we got paint everywhere. I assumed his mother made him put it down since Jean used to be the messiest kid I knew.

We both put our bags down by the door, before going over to the corner to get the paint rollers. He handed one over to me, and I glanced around the room for a moment before looking back up at Jean. "Why are you repainting your room, anyway?"

Jean gave a slight huff, leaning back against the wall and glancing around for a moment. "My ma' and Marco kept nagging at me about the marks everywhere from when I do art and stuff, and that painting it white will make it look cleaner providing I don't get stuff on it again," he mumbled, shrugging a bit. "Guess I just gave in eventually."

I nodded a little, sorting out the paint and pouring it into the tray as I listened. "Well, it has been the same colour since even before I left. Maybe it'll be nice to have a change," I shrugged, rolling up my sleeves before starting to paint.

"I guess," he mumbled, standing up straight again and turning around to start painting as well. It didn't last long, though, because after only a minute he stopped to go over to the corner. "We should put on some music," he said, searching through some songs on his iPod before placing it in his speaker.

I watched him for a few moments, only looking away again as he made his way back over to stand beside me. I paused for a moment as I listened to the song, a small smile creeping up on my face as I recognised the melody. 

"I didn't know you still listened to these guys," I mumbled quietly, not bothering to try and hide my smile as I looked up at him.

He glanced back down at me, returning the smile with one of his own. "Dude, you know My Chemical Romance was my favourite band."

I chuckled softly, nodding a little as I remembered all the times he would play their music. "How could I not know. They were the only thing you ever listened to."

"You didn't listen to any other music either."

I rolled my eyes, grinning a little as I looked back to where I was painting. "That's because I was only ever with you, idiot. I didn't get the chance to listen to any other music."

"Ah, but you loved it, though," he grinned, looking away just as I did. "I do actually listen to other bands now, though. I just didn't know what else you'd like."

"I can literally name five bands that we both probably listen to just by knowing that you like MCR."

"Go on then."

"Fall Out Boy, Panic! at the Disco, All Time Low, Green Day and Blink-182."

He opened his mouth to say something, giving a small huff as he closed it again and looked down slightly. "Maybe..."

I gave a soft chuckle, shaking my head slightly and glancing up at him. "Christ, Jean. Next, you'll be telling me that you spend all your spare time on Tumblr and have an extensive beanie collection."

"Ha! I don't, actually. I got rid of most of my beanies years ago," he said, folding his arms smugly.

I burst out laughing, placing my hand on one of the dry patches on the wall to support me. "Dude, I can't believe you had an emo phase."

"It wasn't an emo phase! If anything it would make me a hipster-"

"A hipster who listens to generic emo bands."

Jean groaned, reaching over and tapping me on the nose with the paint roller. "Shut up."

I let out a small squeak as I felt the tap, immediately reaching up to wipe the paint off. "Rude," I muttered lightly, my lips turning up into a grin after I did the same back to him.

He wrinkled his nose slightly, and I took a step back as he tried to get paint on me again. "Too slow!" I giggled, sticking my tongue out at him before turning around as he tried to get closer.

The next sound of surprise that came out of me wasn't because of Jean getting paint on me, but because I had managed to drag out a thin layer of a newspaper from where it laid by the wall, causing me to slip back. I winced as I fell onto my lower back, biting harshly down on my lower lip and covering my mouth with my hand to prevent any sounds of pain escaping me.

I had fallen on one of the places I had injured the day before, and stopping any tears from dripping out as the sharp pain shot through me was difficult, to say the least. Jean was crouching down at my side when I finally snapped back into reality, having to spend the few moments after falling simply concentrating on my breathing.

"Eren?" He said my name quietly, worry mixed with guilt showing through his tone. "Are you alright?"

I nodded stiffly, not bothering to look up at him and instead keeping my gaze set forward as I sat up straight.

He bit down on his lower lip as he looked me over, sitting down properly and shuffling over a little closer. "Can I look at your back for a second?" He asked, keeping his voice gentle.

I nodded again, closing my eyes as he reached round to lift up the back of my shirt. "Christ," he mumbled quietly under his breath, and I could only guess that there were bruises left from the day before.

He tugged my clothes back down so they were covering my skin before moving back to look me in the eyes, waiting for me to look back at him to start speaking. "Eren... Did Levi do this to you?"

I shook my head a bit, pausing before giving a stiff nod and then shaking my head once more. I removed my hand from my mouth, dropping it to my lap as I shifted slightly so my legs were crossed, avoiding his gaze and looking down at my lap. "Someone else did it because he got me to say that I was him," I explained quietly, tears threatening to leave me again.

There was a small silence between us where neither of us moved, Jean just looking worriedly at me as I did my best to avoid his gaze. After a moment, he shifted a little closer, wrapping his arms around me into a comforting hug. 

I threw my arms around him the moment I was in his hold, clinging onto the back of his jumper and burying my face in his chest to hide my expression. Tears had started flooding down my cheeks, and I knew I wouldn't be able to stop them anytime soon.

"I'm sorry," I choked out, my breathing going heavy as I held him closer. "I thought he cared about me, a-and that we were friends but...I- I should have listened to you. I'm sorry."

Jean gave a small sigh, running his fingers through my hair in a comforting manner as I whimpered against his chest. "Oh God, I'm sorry, Eren... At least he won't bother you anymore," he mumbled quietly, clearly unsure what to say.

I bit down on my lower lip, the time from us sitting in silence allowing me to calm myself down even if it was just a little. My vision was blurry as I looked up at him, the tears still there though no longer spilling out as much. 

"The guy who beat me up told me that I had to meet him again to give him whatever Levi took from Erwin," I mumbled shakily, my arms still wrapped tightly around Jean for support. "I'm supposed to be meeting him in a few hours..."

"Can't you just tell him you're not really Levi?"

I shook my head a little, lowering my gaze slightly in defeat. "I tried to. He doesn't care whether I am or not, he knows I know him and he just wants whatever Levi took."

Jean chewed on his lip in thought, lowering his hand from my hair but still keeping his arms wrapped around me. "Then... Don't meet him. The chances of him seeing you around are pretty low, and he probably will have gotten what he needs from Levi before then."

"But-"

"Eren, he is not going to hurt you again. Not Levi, not anyone. I promise."

I paused before nodding slowly, holding him close again and returning my head to rest on his chest. "...Thank you for looking out for me."

"You're welcome."


	10. Pizza and Chill

I'm not exactly sure just how long we spent sitting on the floor in silence and, after awhile, I realised that Jean wasn't going to pull away until he knew I was okay with him doing so. Eventually, I pulled back, mostly because I didn't want him to be forced into comforting me instead of me actually wanting to let go.

I dropped my hands down to rest in my lap, keeping my gaze downwards as I tried to think of something to say. Jean slowly removed his arms as well, watching me carefully as he waited for me to say something.

"Um, we should probably get back to painting," I mumbled, only just noticing that the music was still playing in the background.

"Are you sure you're okay, then?" He asked quietly, as though speaking too loudly could set me off again. I looked up at him, giving a small nod in response. "Okay," he mumbled slowly, moving to stand up before holding out his hand to help me up.

I gladly took his hand, offering a small smile and mumbling a quiet thank you for the help. He glanced back at the wall, giving a small hum before looking back at me again. "We don't have to continue if you don't want to..."

I rolled my eyes, appreciating his concern but not finding it completely necessary. "I'm fine, you big idiot. Just don't make me fall over again," I said, grinning ever so slightly near the end.

"Not my fault you're so clumsy," he chuckled, and I felt relief flood through me as I realised he was going to drop the subject.

"Whatever," I chuckled, grinning as I went back over to grab the paint roller and starting painting the walls again. "Could ya turn up the music a little bit?"

Jean gave a slight nod, doing as I asked before coming back over to join me again. We continued painting just like before, not really speaking much as we instead just listened to the music blasting out from his speakers.

After over an hour of painting, we were interrupted by a knock on the door to the room we were in. Seconds after, Jean's mother opened the door slightly, poking her head round to look at us and smiling happily in our direction.

"I ordered pizza for you two! You should take a break from painting for a while. It's in the kitchen if you want it!"

Jean and I both smiled back at her, and I could feel my stomach grumble silently at the mention of food. "Thanks, ma," Jean said softly, turning to look at me once she had left the room. "Do you wanna eat it here or...?"

I hummed lightly in thought, glancing around the room before looking back at Jean. "Mind if we don't? It's kinda starting to smell strongly of paint."

"Fine by me," he mumbled lightly, putting his paint roller down before starting to make his way out of the room. "I'll go get it, yeah? We can eat it in the room next to this one."

Once he had left to go downstairs, I put my paint roller down before going over to the room we were going to eat it. It was similar in size and shape to Jean's bedroom, and looking around I could tell it was only Jean who ever went in here.

There was a sofa pressed back against one of the walls with a TV opposite and a countless amount of video games on the shelves. In the corner, there was a large desk, the area around it covered in sketchbooks and various art supplies. Without even realising it, I ended up wandering over to look at the sketchbook that was already open on his desk.

Jean had always been good at art, it's one of the things I remembered him doing when we were younger. He mostly just doodled on his books at school (which he'd always get in trouble for), but even when it was only just a small doodle it still always looked amazing.

Even so, I was surprised at how much he had improved over the years. His artwork was, to put it simply, stunning. I couldn't help but flick through the sketchbook, his work never failing to amaze me. The artwork varied from colourful tattoo designs to simple sketches of celebrities and people he knew.

I froze when I turned over to the next page, staring down at the realistic sketch. It was like looking in a mirror, and I was amazed by how beautiful he had somehow managed to make me look. It was mostly sketched out with a regular pencil, but he had coloured my eyes in bright green so they stood out.

"Do you always go through your friends' personal stuff?"

I jumped slightly at the sound of Jean's voice beside me, not even having noticed him come into the room. I turned around to look at him, ready to apologise before seeing that he had a small grin on his face. He gave a small chuckle, glancing down at his sketchbook for a moment.

"I hope you don't find it weird that I drew you... I mean, I sketch a lot of people and I don't want you to find it creepy or anything."

This time, it was my turn to chuckle, smiling a little at the worry showing through his expression. "No need to get all worried, idiot. By the looks of it, you have a drawing of everything and everyone so I don't find it creepy at all."

Jean seemed to relax slightly at that, giving a small nod before returning his gaze to me. "So do you like it then?"

"I love it. You're so amazing, my artwork is nowhere near as good as yours," I praised, turning to go sit on the couch and Jean following behind.

"You do art?" He asked, slumping down next to me and putting the pizza box down on the small coffee table placed between the sofa and the TV.

"Yeah... I was alone a lot in my last school, so it was really just a way to pass the time. Though, lately I've mostly only been doing it for my A-level coursework," I shrugged, bringing my legs up onto the seat and sitting cross-legged.

"Awh, looks like lil' Jaeger went through the 'emo' phase too," Jean grinned, leaning back and putting his feet up on the coffee table.

"Yeah, well, unfortunately, I wasn't blessed with the ability to make new friends like you," I mumbled, leaning forward and opening up the pizza box. A faint smile made it's way to my expression when I realised it was the same type Jean and I used to have when we were kids - half with pineapple and the other half with just cheese. "Your mum really does have a great memory."

"Yeah, well it's hard to forget since we had it every week," he grinned, grabbing on of the pieces that had pineapple on.

"I can't believe you still actually like that," I mumbled, grabbing a slice from my own side and returning my gaze to him. "Honestly, putting fruit on a pizza is just plain wrong."

"Only have cheese on your pizza is wrong, man. At least have some pepperoni or something. Besides, tomato is a fruit."

I stuck out my tongue childishly before taking a bite of my food, smiling a little as I ate. "Simple things can be better sometimes, you know."

"Yeah, yeah. Just shut up and eat your pizza," he said playfully, finishing off his slice before speaking up again. "Hey, dude, we should play a video game or something," he mumbled between bites, already reaching over to grab the remote and turn on the TV.

I raised my brows slightly, leaning back in my seat. "What about painting your room?" I questioned, knowing that there was still quite a lot left to do.

"We can finish it off tomorrow," he shrugged, going over to change the discs in the console.

I grinned slightly, leaning forward a little to watch him. "You sound very sure of yourself that I'll be coming back tomorrow. What if I'm busy?"

Jean rolled his eyes, still grinning as he came back to sit down and handed me a Wii remote. "Of course, you'll come back. You said you'd help me, after all."

"Hm, I guess you're right. I'll be choosing the music next time, though."

"You'll choose the same type of music as me anyway," he mumbled, opening up the game. I grinned slightly when I saw that it was one of the many Mario Kart games, immediately thinking back to when we used to play it on Gamecube. "Tell you what, if you can beat me then you can choose the music tomorrow."

That would be easy. Jean used to be awful at this game; I beat him almost every time we played it. "Deal. Best out of three?"

"You're on, Jaeger."


	11. Jealousy

Turns out that five years is a lot of time for improvement, and holy shit had Jean stepped up his Mario-Kart-game. He practically destroyed me in the first round, staying in first place for almost the entire race. 

So, for the second round, I ended up sitting up a little, determined to claim my victory against him. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught him smirking slightly, clearly determined to win himself. By the end of the first lap, I had managed to get into second place, easily passing the CPUs but struggling to get any further.

Of course, Jean had managed to stay in first place, and so when we reached the third lap I decided it was time for a different set of tactics. I turned around slightly so I was sitting with my back against the armrest, my legs stretched out in front of me and over Jean's lap. 

I grinned a little as I lifted one of my feet up to his face, having to control my laughter so I wouldn't lose concentration on the game. "Damn it, Eren," he whined, trying to dodge my foot as he kept his gaze set on the screen but ultimately failing.

I only laughed more as I continued to shove my foot in his face, now managing to pass him in the video game and grinning widely at the accomplishment. Now all I had to do was stay in first place until the end of the lap...

"Fuck, Jean!" I huffed out as he moved from his place on the sofa to instead sit in my lap, moving around to block my view of the screen. "Damn it, get off!" I whined, trying to look past him and wiggling uncomfortably under him.

"Awh~ but you're so comfy," he said playfully, a wide smirk returning to his face as he passed me only seconds before reaching the finish line. "Ha! Suck it, Jaeger. I can still beat your ass, even with your feet in my face for half the time."

"Only because you were blocking my view," I mumbled in defeat, pouting slightly and setting the remote down onto the sofa. "Can you get off me now?" I asked, gently poking his back.

He gave a small shake of his head, placing his remote down beside mine and staying where he was. "Nope. I already told you, you're comfy."

"And you're heavy," I replied, giving him a light push. 

"True, but I'm also amazing at Mario Kart. Doesn't that get me any credit?"

"Doesn't give you permission to crush my legs," I mumbled quietly, though honestly, I was exaggerating a little. "How did you get so good at the damn game, anyway?"

Jean shrugged, adjusting his position so he could face me. "It's basically the only multiplayer game that Marco will agree to play. Guess I got a lot of practice."

Of course. Makes sense, they probably spent every second of their lives together between the time I left and came back. "Ah, okay then," I mumbled, looking away from him and giving a slight nod.

I could see Jean looking me over, clearly noticing that something was off in my response. Christ, what was my problem anyway? I had to move away, it wasn't like Jean was just going to wait for me to come back and not make any more friends whilst he did. Hell, he didn't even know I was coming back. 

I guess I was just jealous, but even that didn't seem to be the right word for it. It was more like I was just disappointed that Marco was able to spend so much time with Jean and I wasn't. Though, thinking about it, I guess that's what jealousy really is.

"Eren?"

I snapped back to reality at the sound of his voice, instantly forcing a small smile to hide any of the past emotions I had been showing and returning my gaze to meet his. He was clearly concerned, unsure as to why my response had sounded so odd.

I didn't want to have to explain my ridiculous thoughts, so I thought an excuse would be better, the words coming out of me before I had even fully decided on what to say. "I think I need to go," I mumbled quietly, quickly continuing before he could question any further. "I have some art I need to catch up on..."

"But... What about the pizza? There's still a lot left."

I glanced down at the almost untouched pizza, giving a small shrug before looking back at him. "You could put it in the fridge so we can have it tomorrow?" I suggested, offering more of a smile so he was more likely to agree without questioning any further.

"Alright," he mumbled, his voice quieter than usual. A wave of guilt hit me as I realised how disappointed he was that I was leaving so early, but I knew he'd be fine with it since I was coming straight back after school tomorrow anyway.

Slowly, he shifted off of me, moving out of the way so there was room for me to get up as well. He followed me on my way out, both of us going to his bedroom so I could grab my backpack before leaving. His mother stopped us before we could reach the front door, however, still smiling happily as she complained that I was leaving so early.

"Um, yeah, I have a lot of schoolwork to do so..." I trailed off awkwardly, shifting my backpack on my shoulder.

"Oh, of course! Goodness, you're just like Jeanie. He spends every moment alone in his room painting and such. Well, if you really do insist on leaving so early then I'll give you a lift home!"

I rubbed the back of my neck, flicking my gaze between Jean and his mother. "Oh, you don't have to. I'll be fine catching the bus..."

"Don't be silly, it's no trouble," she insisted, reaching into her pockets and bringing out her car keys.

"But-"

"God, Eren," Jean interrupted, rolling his eyes and taking a step forward. "She's not going to let you leave until you agree," he said simply, opening up the front door to go out to the car.

I gave a soft sigh but made sure to smile when I looked back up Jean's mother. "Thank you," I said quietly, making my way outside and joining Jean in sitting in the back of her car.

"You're very welcome, Eren," she smiled, following us out a few moments after and starting up the vehicle. 

I always found car journeys awkward when it came to driving with your friend's family. Every time it was the same; the kids sitting in the back and the adults in the front, and staying mostly in awkward silence with the knowledge that everyone would be able to hear your conversation if you spoke.

"You're living with your dad now, aren't you Eren? Just so I know I'm driving to the right place," she piped up, looking completely relaxed as she drove.

"Yeah, it's the same place he's lived for years," I answered, giving a small nod.

"I know, Eren. Actually, Marco lives just around the corner from you! You do know him, don't you?" She asked curiously, and I raised my brow after hearing that he lived so close and I had never seen him around. 

"Of courses Eren knows him, ma. We all had lunch together today."

"Oh, of course! You little sweeties, I can tell you're all going to be best friends together," she said positively, a wide smile spread on her face.

"Ma," Jean whined, though I was relieved to see that it was clear he didn't dislike the idea.

Turning my head to look over at Jean, I leant in a little closer to talk to him. "I didn't know Marco lived so close to me."

"You never asked," he shrugged, slouching back in his seat slightly. "You've probably never seen him around because he leaves early for school."

"What about after school?"

"He usually stays after school to tutor some of the younger students. Or he hangs out with me for a bit."

I gave a small nod, turning my head back around to stare out of the window for the rest of the journey. I hated the jealousy burning through me. Marco was just so perfect, and I felt like I couldn't ever compete with him.

But that was the thing, I didn't have to compete with him and I had no idea why I felt like I had to. Marco has to be one of the nicest people I've ever met, and I was glad to be friends with him. Well, I think we're friends. It's not like we've actually spent much time together.

I just hoped that he did actually want me hanging out with him and Jean. Intruding on someone else's friendship was the last thing I wanted to do.

"We're here, Eren!" Jean's mother announced, parking the car to let me get out.

"Thank you for the ride, Miss Kirstein," I said with a small nod, offering her a smile as I got out of the car.

"Anytime, Eren. And I told you, call me Linda!" She called, and I gave a soft chuckle before shutting the door and walking up my driveway.

"Hey, Jaeger! Make sure to meet me and Marco in the canteen ((cafeteria)) at lunch tomorrow!" Jean called out, and a small grin tugged at my lips.

Guess it looks like I'm finally getting back the friendship I wanted.


	12. Realisation

I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel guilty for ignoring and avoiding Petra, but I honestly didn't have the strength to try to speak to her. I still had no idea whether or not Levi's friends knew what he was planning to do, but I doubted that they could be completely clueless. It was just a shame, really, Petra seemed like a genuinely nice person.

Thankfully I have a lot of experience in ignoring my problems, so blanking them out wasn't too difficult. It was made even easier now that I actually had real friends, giving me something to look forward to so I could get through the day.

Lunchtime was similar to how it was the day before, except this time we were eating the school's food instead of chips. We all sat outside on one of the school benches, with me on one side and Jean and Marco on the other.

Even though I had only hung out with Marco once before, it felt natural joining in on the conversation. I just felt so comfortable being around them, and I was glad that I would be able to spend even more time with them from now on.

Once lunch was over, I spent the next two hours looking forward to going back to Jean's place. I now knew which bus to catch, so as soon as the final bell went for the day I went straight out to search for Jean's bus. I shuffled to the back of the vehicle, glancing around to look for him.

My brows raised slightly when I saw him sitting beside Marco near the back of the bus, inwardly slapping myself for being disappointed that it wouldn't be just the two of us. Thinking about it, I should have known Marco would be coming over as well, since the only reason I even went at all yesterday was because he couldn't show up.

The freckled ravenette smiled widely upon seeing me, giving a small wave in my direction. "Hey, Eren!" He greeted cheerfully, before pausing and glancing around the mostly-full bus. "Do you want to sit here?" He asked, returning his gaze to me. "You can have my seat if you want."

I gave a small smile at his greeting, sighing softly when he offered his seat to me. "It's fine, Marco. The journey isn't all that long, anyway," I shrugged, going over to sit a couple of seats back and to the side of them. 

I held my bag in my lap, not paying too much attention to the person I had sat next to. They had their earphones in, and I was honestly just glad that I wasn't forced to sit beside one of the irritating year sevens.

I found myself watching Jean and Marco for most of the ride, and I got annoyed each time I caught myself doing it. I guess it was normal, surely most people would feel at least somewhat left out in this situation. Though I really don't think it was being alone that was affecting me; I was used to that. No, it was definitely more to do with me being disappointed.

I just couldn't understand why I was so disappointed. Marco is literally the kindest and most welcoming person I have ever met, and I loved being around him, so why was I wishing he wasn't here? God, maybe I just wanted to make up for lost time with Jean. I guess that could be another normal feeling for someone in my situation.

When we finally got to Jean's stop, I eagerly got up from my seat and followed the two off of the bus. None of us felt the need to speak as we waited to cross the road, instead opting to walk in a comfortable silence before going into Jean's house. 

He let out a faint sigh when the door wouldn't open, having to fish around in his pockets for a few moments before pulling out his keys. When we actually got inside he closed the door behind him, picking off a sticky note left on the wall beside it. 

"Ma says she won't be back until late," he told us, still looking down at the note. "And apparently she finished painting my bedroom for me, so I guess we don't have to do that anymore," he mumbled before giving a slight shrug and scrunching the paper up to throw in the bin.

"Awh, what do you want to do then?" Marco asked, flicking his gaze between Jean and me for our opinions. 

"We could just watch TV or something," Jean suggested, to which Marco simply rolled his eyes and grinned faintly.

"Come on, Jeanie! You can't spend all day inside. Oh, we could go to the beach!"

"It's September," Jean huffed, folding his arms and leaning back against the hallway wall. 

"Exactly," Marco continued, clearly determined to get us to agree. "It will be raining almost every day soon, this might be our last chance to go and enjoy it!"

Jean looked like he was about to say something to disagree again, but before the words could come out of his mouth I interrupted him. "I think the beach sounds like fun. Besides, we can sit around and watch TV anytime we want."

"Two against one!" Marco cheered, grinning widely as Jean let out a groan of defeat.

"Alright, alright," he mumbled, dumping his backpack down in the hallway before opening the front door again. "You can leave your bags here if you want, ma will want to drive you home anyway."

We both did as Jean suggested, leaving our school bags down by his before following him outside. The walk to the beach was reasonably short, only lasting around ten minutes. It felt so nostalgic walking down there since it was the exact path I used to take with Jean and his mum when we were little. 

I don't think I ever have been down here without Miss Kirstein, she wouldn't let us. It was understandable, of course, we were only kids and she was probably worried that we would drown or something.

The beach was rather empty, but that only seemed to make us ('us' mostly just being Marco) more excited. The freckled raven ran enthusiastically down the steps that led down to the sand, holding onto Jean's wrist to hurry him down as well.

I followed slowly behind, not bothering to try to keep up with them. By the time I had caught up with them, Marco was already starting to take off his shoes. "Come on, Eren!" Marco encouraged, "let's go swimming!"

"Uh, no thank you. I don't want to get my uniform wet..."

Jean rolled his eyes, tugging off his school blazer and undoing the buttons on his shirt. "That's why you take your uniform off, idiot. Just go in your underwear," he shrugged, pulling his shirt off completely so he was only in his boxers.

My brows raised up slightly at the sight, partly because I was enjoying it more than I expected but also because he was skinnier than I thought he would be.

"I think I'll just sit this one out," I mumbled, not exactly keen on taking off any of my clothes.

"Awh, come on Eren. It'll be fun," Marco insisted, now in just his boxers just like Jean. "Please?"

I let out a small sigh, giving in to his pleading. "Alright, alright," I said, tugging off my tie. "You two go on ahead."

"Hooray! Come on, Jeanie," Marco grinned, giggling when Jean groaned in annoyance at the nickname, before holding onto his hand and pulling him in the direction of the sea. 

A small sigh involuntarily made its way past my lips, the same feeling from when I saw them on the bus earlier returning. Five years was a long time, they've gotten so close whilst I was gone. 

That's not the only thing that's changed. Jean looks so different now, which was to be expected of course but looking at him now especially... Puberty really was an amazing thing. He just looked so... Attractive. So...

Oh crap, I knew exactly why I had been getting so jealous over Jean and Marco's relationship. It wasn't just because I wish I could've been friends with Jean for longer, or that I disliked Marco in any way at all. It was because, for whatever reason, I had fallen for him.

Out of all the people, I had fallen for Jean Kirstein. That's why seeing the two together bothered me so much because they're so damn close. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if they were actually dating.

I paused midway through taking off my shirt, biting down on my lower lip as I stared in Jean and Marco's direction. Was it possible that they're actually dating and I never noticed? For all I knew, they could be dating in secret, probably still both in the closet.

Or maybe they're just really close friends, at least I hoped so. They might not even be gay...

Oh God, I think that would be even worse. If that's the case then I have no chance with him. Then again, maybe it's a good thing. Maybe it would be best if I just waited for this stupid crush to pass, I'd hate to ruin our friendship especially as it hasn't been long since we became friends again.

"Hey, Jaeger! Are you actually going to join us or are you just going to stand there and watch?"

I snapped out of my thoughts as Jean called my name (well, surname), immediately returning to taking off my shirt. "Don't be so impatient," I called back, hoping that I hadn't been staring for too long.

Once I had taken all of my clothes off, with the exception of my boxers, I ran over to join them in the sea. A shiver ran through me as I stepped into the water, trying to take it slow so I could get used to the cold temperature.

Apparently, taking it slow wasn't an option and before I knew it Jean had picked me up bridal style, laughing lightly as he carried me into deeper water. "Jean, wait," I begged, squealing as my toes dipped into the cold water again and holding myself closer to the other, my arms wrapped tightly around him.

I tried to ignore how fast my heart was beating with Jean's arms wrapped around me, and how the physical contact wasn't affecting Jean in any way whatsoever. Luckily, (sort of) it wasn't too difficult to concentrate on something else as we got deeper in the water.

"Don't you fucking dare," I mumbled as he lowered me down slightly, the water feeling like ice against my bare back. "I swear to- Fuck!"

My arms moved to wrap around my own body as he lowered my down completely, the water going up past my stomach. "How are you two not freezing?" I asked shakily, shivers running through my body as I turned to look at them.

"You'll get used to it," Jean shrugged, going a little further into the ocean.

"Plus we were here almost every day in the summer," Marco added, and yet again I was struck with a pang of jealousy. "Lil' Jeanie usually spent the time making sandcastles, though," he said with a small grin, staying beside me instead of joining Jean by going in further.

"Oh, shut up. There's nothing wrong with me making sandcastles," Jean huffed, turning back around to face us and flicked water in our direction.

"I never said there was," Marco smiled, chuckling softly as he splashed Jean back. 

"Yeah, lots of kids like making sandcastles," I smirked, joining Marco in splashing water at Jean.

"You guys are assholes," Jean muttered, flicking more water up at our faces.

"Relax, dork. We're only teasing. If you want to, we can build some sandcastles another day," I promised, returning the action.

"Don't call me a dork, dork," he grinned, flicking more water back at me.

"You two are ridiculous," Marco chuckled, shaking his head a little and smiling widely at me and Jean. "Come on, let's go get dried off. Maybe after we can get some ice cream or something. "

It was sort of weird how innocent Marco was in comparison to... another certain ravenette. And, if I'm honest, I much preferred his and Jean's idea of fun to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's. "Sounds good to me," I smiled, and Jean nodded in agreement.


	13. Defence

Keeping my eyes off of Jean once we were out of the water was a lot harder than I had hoped. What can I say, the guy looked good in just his underwear (and the water managed to make him even hotter). Annoying as it was, now that I had acknowledged my feelings towards him it was a lot more difficult to ignore all the small details about him.

Much to my disappointment (but also my relief), once we were back on the sand we started getting changed back into our clothes. I didn't bother trying to put my tie back on, instead just scrunching it up and stuffing it in my pocket.

A small sigh passed my lips as I absentmindedly ran my fingers through my partially wet hair, mumbling quietly to myself. "It must look so messy..."

"You talking to yourself there, Jaeger?" Jean asked, causing me to jump slightly. He simply chuckled at my reaction, before reaching a hand up to ruffle my hair and mess it up even further. "If it makes you feel any better, I think you look good like this," he said quietly, a small grin appearing on his face before he turned back around to go over to Marco.

Relief would be an understatement to how I felt when he turned away, and I silently thanked whatever God was listening that he hadn't seen the bright shade of red now spreading across my cheeks. It was ridiculous how such a small comment like that could affect me, but I knew I'd probably be blushing at least a little even if it wasn't Jean who had said it.

"Ice cream time!" Marco cheered happily, already starting to walk back over to the steps that led off of the beach. My lips twitched up into a small smile at how excited he was, and Jean and I quickly moved to catch up with him.

Jean shoved his hands in his pockets, giving a light huff a few moments after. "I think I left my wallet in my bag..."

"I can pay for you," Marco and I both piped up at the same time, and I could feel my cheeks darken slightly at how much more eager I sounded.

Marco chuckled softly, giving me a small nudge and smiling sweetly. "Don't worry, I can pay for him. I probably owe him from all the times he's paid for me anyway."

I gave a small nod, trying to hide my slight disappointment. I still couldn't get over how Jean was now closer to Marco than he was to me, and I couldn't help but feel like a third wheel on occasion.

We soon neared the small ice cream shop, and I stood a little behind Jean and Marco as we queued. Marco turned slightly to talk to me, a smile still on his face. "What are you gonna get then, Eren?"

Before I could reply, Jean had answered for me. "Mint chocolate chip," he said with a small grin, and I smiled back at him, glad that he remembered something so trivial.

"Yup. I'm guessing you'll be getting strawberry then?"

Jean gave a light nod, and my smile grew further in response. "Of course, I don't think I've ever had any other type from here."

"You two must have spent all your time together as kids," Marco commented, turning away for a moment as he got his and Jean's ice cream. "It's kind of cute."

I smiled sheepishly, looking away from the both of them as I went up to pay for my own food. Jean gave a small chuckle, reaching over to ruffle my hair with his free hand. "We did. I don't think we ever hung out with anyone else."

"Apart from your mother," I added, mumbling a small thank you to the woman behind the till before turning around, the three of us starting to walk away from the shop. "Hm, Jean was definitely cute when he was little," I grinned, glancing up at him when he nudged me.

"I was not."

"You were!" Marco joined in, grinning widely. "I've seen photos! You were adorable," he giggled, causing Jean to pout from annoyance.

"And then puberty hit you," I mumbled, blushing slightly when I realised I had said it aloud.

"Damn right it did," Jean smirked cockily, winking at me before looking over at Marco expectantly.

Marco simply rolled his eyes but kept the smile on his face as he reached into his pocket with his free hand to pull out his phone. "I knew you loved it really," he mumbled quietly, standing still as he held his phone up to take a photo.

Jean wrapped an arm around me to bring me in closer, making sure I was in shot of the camera. "Smile, Jaeger," he chuckled, and I smiled sheepishly as I looked up at the phone screen. 

Marco chuckled after he took the photo, licking his ice cream as he posted it to Instagram. "Look!" He said excitedly, showing the screen to me and Jean. My smile grew a little further at the caption, 'Chilling with my besties,' and I could see that Jean was grinning faintly too. 

"Awh, Jaeger, you're blushing in the photo," Jean grinned, moving his arm from around me to hold the phone closer to himself. 

"Am not," I denied, before quickly speaking up again before he had the chance to respond. "Can we sit down somewhere? My legs are getting, um, tired..."

"He never was good at lying," Jean commented, but we started walking over to one of the benches anyway. Before we could sit down we paused in place at the sound of someone calling my name.

My facial expression dropped at the sight of Petra and Levi making their way towards us, the ravenette's expression just a blank as always. "Eren!" She called, jogging over and stopping when she reached us, sounding a little out of breath. "You can't keep ignoring us!"

I swallowed thickly, unable to move or say anything. 

"Yeah, Eren," Levi said softly, but I could tell he was smirking on the inside. "Why would you just leave us all so suddenly?" He asked, reaching over to rest his hand on my shoulder. I shrunk back slightly at the awaited contact, my body filling up with fear and uncertainty.

The contact never happened, though, and I peeked open one of my eyes that I didn't even realise had closed at the sound of a loud thud. My gaze flicked between Jean and Levi, my fear easily being replaced with anger when I realised that Levi had punched Jean instead of it being the other way around like I had hoped.

Jean had a firm grip on Levi's wrist, determined to keep him off of me. He was shaking slightly from anger himself, and most likely from pain too. Before I even realised it my hands had formed into fists, the ice cream cone that was in one hand being crushed in the process, and my body felt like it was out of my control as I took a swing at the short ravenette.

I managed to hit him in the face, but before I could fully celebrate he had already punched me in the stomach. I could hear the other three saying something but the exact words never fully processed, and I was too caught up in throwing punches at Levi to try to listen properly.

"Fuck you! You don't fucking touch him!" I screamed, my throat aching as each word was strained. I wasn't even feeling his punches anymore, each hit just numbing my body even more. My punches weren't as strong or as often as Levi's, but even so I couldn't help but feel like he was holding back.

Someone's arms wrapped around my waist to pull me back, and I noticed that Petra was doing the same to Levi. He didn't struggle against her, calmly taking a few steps back. I squirmed about in what I assumed to be Marco's arms, desperately trying to reach Levi again. 

The ravenette just snickered at my attempt, shrugging himself out of Petra's grip before turning around and starting to walk away again, the strawberry blonde hesitating slightly before following along behind him. "Let go of me!" I cried out, surprised at how strong Marco's hold on me was.

"Eren," Jean snapped, his hands gripping at my shoulders to keep me still. "It's not worth it."I looked up to meet his gaze, dropping my arms heavily down at my sides and stilling my body. "Christ, Eren... Right, we'll clean you up back at my place."

"I'm fine," I mumbled, shifting over to the side when Marco let go of me. They exchanged a look of slight concern, Jean giving a small sigh before reaching over and picking me up bridal style. I didn't bother arguing against the action, instead just wrapping my arms around him and burying my face in the crook of his neck.

He shifted me slightly in his arms to get a better hold, before starting to walk again. My eyes fluttered shut as I relaxed in his arms, my body going heavy as I slowly drifted off to sleep.


	14. Aftercare

"Do you think I should wake him up?"

"Maybe you should just let him sleep. It's probably for the best that you stay with him, too. I'll take notes for you in class."

"Thanks. I'll talk to you later."

"Talk to you later, Jeanie! Take good care of him."

My body ached as I slowly sat up, my eyes fluttering open and settling on Jean. He offered a faint smile when he saw that I was awake, setting down his phone and moving over to the edge of the bed to sit beside me.

My eyes widened slightly when I saw that he had a black eye, guilt flooding through me at the sight. "Your eye..."

"Yeah, well it's nothing compared to you," he mumbled, reaching back over to grab his phone and handing it to me so I could use it as a mirror. "You've probably got bruises over the rest of your body too. It might be good if you take a bath or something."

I gave a small sigh when I saw my reflection, one of my hands reaching up to run lightly over my bruised skin. I had a black eye just like Jean, as well as a split lip. "He's stronger than I expected."

"He was holding back."

"It was worth it, though-"

"No, it wasn't," he interrupted, his tone completely serious. I lowered the phone slightly, flicking my gaze over to look at him, biting down on my lip when I saw his expression. "You have to promise that you won't try anything like that again."

"But-"

"Eren, he could easily do far worse than he did yesterday. If Petra wasn't there then he probably would have. You can't do that again, okay?" I lowered my head slightly, biting down on my lower lip and giving a slow nod. Jean gave a quiet sigh before shifting slightly, wrapping his arms around me to pull me into a hug.

"I know he hurt you, in more ways than one, but fighting back will only make it worse. I just... I don't want you getting hurt again."

I gave another small nod, wrapping my arms around him and returning the hug. I didn't say anything, just pulled myself closer and rested my head against his chest.

"I called your dad and told him you were staying overnight, so don't worry about him not knowing where you are. Ma has already left for work, but you should probably expect a speech of sorts from her when she gets back. She was really worried when we came back last night."

Although receiving a speech from Jean's mum wasn't something that I was excited for, I was still filled with warmth at the thought of her being so worried. She was basically my second mother, and now that I didn't live with my actual mum anymore it was pretty comforting.

"Thanks for the warning," I said lightly, giving a faint smile as I pulled back to look at him. My gaze then trailed down to the floor of his bedroom, a small sigh passing my lips when I noticed a couple of pillows and a duvet laid out. "You slept on the floor?" I asked, lifting my gaze back up to look at him.

"Yeah. I mean, it's only a single bed and I find it comfier sleeping on the floor than on the sofa," he answered, dropping his arms back down to his sides and giving a small shrug. 

"You didn't have to do that."

"Idiot. I wasn't going to get you to sleep on the floor, was I?" He said, rolling his eyes and moving to stand up. "Anyway, I'll go run your bath. You can pick out some of my clothes to wear whilst you wait."

He was out of the room before I could even say thank you, leaving me to search through his wardrobe. We were close enough to the same size that his clothes would fit me, so I just picked out a navy sweater and some faded black jeans, as well as some socks and underwear.

"Jaeger! Your bath's ready!"

"Coming," I called back, holding the clothes to my chest and making my way to the bathroom. "Um, thank you," I mumbled quietly.

"You're welcome," he smiled, before moving out of the bathroom and closing the door behind him. The corners of my lips twitched up into a smile when I saw that he had filled the bath with bubbles, the amount making me happier than it probably should have.

I stripped off my clothing, biting down on my lower lip when I looked down and saw the amount of bruises on my stomach and upper arms. Jean was right when he said that fighting back wasn't worth it.

My entire body relaxed as I slipped into the tub, my eyes fluttering shut as I laid my head back against the edge. I'm not sure how long it was that I was in there until there was a knock on the bathroom door. 

"I've made breakfast if you want any," he called through the door, my stomach grumbling in response. Apparently, it was loud enough to be heard through the door, as I could hear Jean chuckling moments after. "I'll get your plate ready, then."

I rolled my eyes, grinning faintly as I sat up and waited for Jean to go back downstairs before getting out of the tub. After drying myself off, I got dressed into Jean's clothes. The sweater was a little big on me, but that only made it more comfortable to wear.

Once I was fully dressed I went to make my way downstairs, leaving my school uniform in Jean's bedroom on the way. When I reached the kitchen I was greeted by a bacon-filled aroma, causing my stomach to grumble even more.

"Someone sure sounds hungry," Jean chuckled, turning around from the kitchen counter with a plate in each hand. "I guess it is a little later than when you'd usually have breakfast."

I gave a small shrug as I sat down at the table, staring down at my plate when Jean put it down in front of me. "Not really. I mean, I never really have breakfast on school days."

"Really? I wouldn't let Marco hear you say that. He'll end up coming over to your house each morning to force you to eat breakfast," he said, sitting down opposite me. "Seriously, though. I'm speaking from experience when I say that."

I raised my brows slightly, tilting my head off to the side. "Really? He doesn't live that close to you, though."

"I know. He sometimes actually caught the bus to my house before school just to make sure I ate something. Most of the time he just got me to eat when I got to school, though."

I gave a small nod, looking down at my food as he spoke. "That's nice of him."

"Yeah, well he doesn't do it anymore 'cause he knows I actually eat now," he shrugged, before taking a bite out of his bacon sandwich. I raised my brows slightly, wondering if he was only talking about breakfast or eating in general. "He still gets my ma' to check up on me, though."

"You... had problems with eating?" I asked carefully, my words coming out a little quieter than usual.

"Well... I didn't lose all that weight from healthy eating or a balanced diet," he answered slowly, keeping his gaze set downward as he spoke. He gave a small sigh before looking up again, offering a smile. "That was years ago, though. I'm completely fine now."

I gave a small smile back, seeing that he didn't really want to go into any more detail. "Well, It's good to hear that you're okay now," I said with a slight nod, before starting to eat my own breakfast. There was a small moment of silence before I spoke up again. "Sorry for making you miss school."

"It's fine," he shrugged. "I had mostly frees today anyway. Besides, it's nice to have a day off."

I gave a slight nod in agreement, continuing to take small bites of my sandwich between speaking. "I guess so. I don't think that I'll miss anything too important today, and I'd definitely much rather stay here with you anyway."

"Glad to hear it," he chuckled, standing up after finishing off his food. "Maybe we could have a rematch of Mario Kart if you're up for it."

I rolled my eyes, finishing my breakfast before standing up and going over to join Jean at the sink. "You only won last time because you cheated," I huffed, putting my plate in the washing up bowl that Jean had started filling up.

"If I remember correctly, you're the one who started the cheating."

"Whatever, I'll definitely beat you this time," I said determinedly, a small grin appearing on my face.

"'Course you will. First, though, you have to help me wash up."

"Yes, Jeanie," I giggled, taking the towel as he handed it to me. He simply rolled his eyes in response, before starting to wash up some of the dishes, then passing them over to me so I could dry them off. I hummed quietly as I dried everything off, keeping my gaze set down.

"Hey, Eren."

"Hm?" I looked up, turning my head to look at the other only to be greeted by a handful of bubbles to my face. Jean burst out into laughter at my blank reaction, a wide grin spreading across his features. I put down the plate that I had been drying off, reaching into the washing-up bowl to gather up some of the remaining bubbles before turning back and dumping them on Jean's head.

His laughter was quickly replaced with groans of protest, his hands reaching up to try to remove the bubbles from his hair. I simply giggled at his response, before letting out a (totally not girlish) squeal as he flicked some water at me.

Soon enough we were having a miniature water fight, splashing the remaining water at each other. The floor was covered in water, and as I took a step forward to flick some more at Jean I slipped on a small puddle that had formed on the floor.

Jean quickly reached forward as I slipped, wrapping his arms around me to keep me up and steady before I could reach the ground. I gave a nervous giggle as I looked up at him, my hands gripping at his back to help keep my balance.

"Careful, Jaeger. Don't want you getting any more bruises," he said with a slight grin, and I couldn't help but feel disappointed as he removed his arms from around me.

"Heh, thanks," I mumbled quietly, rubbing the back of my neck as I stood up straight again.

"No problem," he shrugged, glancing around at the floor for a moment before looking back down at me. "We should probably clean up the mess before ma gets back, though."

"Sure, let's get to it then."


	15. Bets

Once we had cleared up all of the mess, we went upstairs and ended up sitting on the sofa in the room beside Jean's bedroom to watch TV. Jean let me choose what to watch and, although he protested at first, we ended up watching Pretty Little Liars.

I wasn't even sure how many episodes we had gotten through, losing track after only the first few. Honestly, I was too busy appreciating the fact that there was so little space between where Jean and I sat, a blanket covering the both of us and providing further warmth and comfort.

Not too long after school was supposed to end, we heard someone unlock the front door. A small sigh slipped past my lips as I remembered what Jean had said about his mother giving me a speech when she got back, and out of the corner of my eye, I could see him giving a small smile of encouragement.

It wasn't long until the door to the room we were in was opened, Miss Kirstein quickly rushing over to the small sofa to throw her arms around me in a motherly hug. I shared an awkward glance with Jean before looking back up at his mother as she pulled back, her hands holding onto my shoulders as she spoke to me.

"Eren! What on earth were you thinking? I was so worried when you came back last night. Promise me you won't do something like that again."

I couldn't help but smile slightly at just how concerned she was, enjoying the feeling of having someone care about me so much. I gave a small nod, managing to change my expression to one that looked at least a little apologetic. "I'm sorry. I won't, I've already had Jeanie make me promise the same thing."

The corners of her lips twitched up into a small smile at that, and she returned her hands to her sides as she stood up and looked over at Jean. "Did he now? Well, I'm glad to see you two taking care of each other at least."

I blushed faintly at the comment, sharing a small smile with Jean. "Speaking of which," she carried on, "Marco is downstairs making the two of you some hot chocolate. He says he has some notes to give you two from school."

"Well, the notes are only for Jean really," Marco added in with a light chuckle, coming in and placing a tray with three mugs on it on the coffee table in front of us. He sat down between me and Jean (which I have to admit disappointed me slightly), before turning to face me. Miss Kirstein took now as her time to leave, quietly closing the door behind her.

"Are you alright? You sure took a beating last night." Well, that wasn't exactly making me feel better. "I don't think I would even be brave enough to try to fight him - Jeanie was talking about how touched he felt by you protecting him!"

Now that did make me feel better. "Well, it's only because he protected me first," I mumbled quietly, noting how Jean was now blushing ever so faintly. "It's honestly not that bad, though. I mean, the injuries could've been a lot worse..."

"Things can always be worse, Eren. That doesn't make them any less acceptable!" He gave a slight sigh, reaching over to pick up one of the three mugs and handing it over to me. "I put cream on top too. Jean says you used to like it that way."

A gave a small smile of appreciation, gladly taking the plain white mug from his hold. "Thank you," I mumbled quietly, wincing slightly as my split lip pressed against the mug as I took a sip.

"Dude, you put cream on my too, right?" Jean asked, and Marco rolled his eyes in response before handing over his mug as well.

"Yes, Jeanie. I put cream on all of them, so you don't need to start complaining," he explained, starting to sip on his own drink. "Oh, you guys were watching Pretty Little Liars?" He asked, looking up at the screen where one of the episodes had been paused.

"You like PLL?" I questioned, a barely audible groan coming from Jean in the background.

"Are you kidding? I've watched every episode to date like three times already! I've been trying to get Jean to watch it for ages, but he always refused," he said with a light huff, pouting slightly as he glanced over at Jean.

As silly as it was, knowing that Jean had refused Marco's requests of watching the show but gave in when I asked him made me sort of happy. Maybe I was more important to him than I had realised. "Yeah? He took a bit of convincing at first, but I think he started enjoying it."

Marco gave an excited squeal, reaching over to grab the remote. "This is so amazing! Can we continue watching them, then? Oh, we can all watch it together every day!"

"Nope. No way. We are not doing that," Jean protested, grabbing the remote with his free hand and putting it off to the side. "No more Pretty Little Liars, alright?"

"Christ, Jean. Who knew your masculinity was so fragile?" I teased, grinning as Marco gave a quiet giggle. "No one's gonna judge you if you just admit that you like the show."

"Fuck you, Jaeger, you ass."

"You are what you eat," I said simply, giving a light shrug.

Marco spat out some of his drink, covering his mouth as he laughed quietly. "Hey, Jean, you owe me a fiver."

I raised my brows slightly, though I had to admit that the comment didn't really surprise me that much. "You guys bet whether I was gay or not."

"Well, I thought it was pretty obvious," Marco said, his grin widening slightly. "And we only made the bet because Jean kept complaining about how he wasn't sure and that-"

His words became muffled as Jean covered his mouth with his hand, setting his mug down on the coffee table for a better hold. After a moment he let out a sound of disgust, pulling his hand back to wipe on his clothes. "Damn it, Marco."

Marco giggled, sticking his tongue out at him. "I hope you wash your hands, Jeanie."

"Um, guys," I mumbled, tugging lightly on Marco's sleeve. "What exactly were you gonna say?"

"Nothing," Jean huffed, folding his arms. "He wasn't going to say anything."

"Right," I said slowly, before looking back over at the TV. "Should we continue watching or...?"

"Oh, yes!" Marco said excitedly, reaching over to retrieve the remote before Jean could take it away again. Jean mumbled something under his breath, though I couldn't tell exactly what, reaching over to get his mug and sipping on his drink as we watched.

~

After a few more hours of watching, we decided to call it quits since it was starting to get dark. Miss Kirstein gladly drove me and Marco home, the two of us sitting in the back with Jean in the front.

"Oh, Eren," Jean spoke up just as we were nearing my street. "I didn't tell your dad why you were staying over, so you'll have to explain the whole black eye thing when he sees you..."

I let out a quiet sigh, not exactly sure on what my dad's reaction was going to be. If I still lived with my mother then I know she'd react almost exactly the same way Miss Kirstein did, but I wasn't so sure about my dad...

"Oh, sweetie, don't worry about it," Jean's mother said as she parked just outside my house. "You'll be fine. Now, make sure you get enough sleep. We don't want you being all tired at school tomorrow!"

"I will. Thank you for the ride, and thanks for letting me stay over," I smiled, giving the other two a small wave as I climbed out of the car. With any luck, my dad wouldn't even be home. I really didn't want to have to explain anything to him.

I sighed when I opened the door to see that the lights were still on, trying to be quiet as I closed it behind me. "Eren?" My dad called from the living room, appearing a few moments later. "Oh, God. Did someone beat you up?"

"Um, yeah," I mumbled, rubbing the back of my neck. "That's why I stayed over at Jean's, I guess. I sort of started it, though, sorry..."

"Ah, well as long as you were standing your ground. I wouldn't want you letting people hurt you without fighting back. I'm quite proud of you, son."

I raised my brows slightly, giving a slow nod. "Yeah, um, thank you?"

He gave a sort of chuckle in response, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. "Yes, well, I think it's for the best that your mother doesn't hear about this. You know what she's like, always worrying."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I think I'm gonna go to bed early tonight, goodnight," I said, walking past him and making my way up to my room.

"Night, son."


	16. Surprise

We actually did end up watching Pretty Little Liars again. Every day after school, we'd all catch the bus over to Jean's house and watch a few episodes before his mother would drive us home. I never really met up with either of them over the weekend, since I was too busy doing my artwork for school.

That, and I was finding hanging out with people so often to be rather tiring. I didn't dislike it, but I still definitely loved my alone time as well. If I didn't get enough time to just sit around and listen to music I think I'd go insane.

Saying that, I had no complaints when I received a text message from Jean on Saturday morning, my lips twitching up into a small smile as I read it.

'Found something you might like, mind coming over to my place?' -JK

I don't think I've ever replied so fast in my life.

'I'll be there in ten minutes!!' -EJ

I quickly got up from my desk, shoving my phone in my pocket and making my way out of the house. Once I got there Jean was already waiting for me outside, his lips twitching up into an excited smile when he saw me.

"Hey, so what's this all about exactly?" I asked, tilting my head off to the side slightly.

"It's a surprise," he said, before holding up a scarf. "Do you mind?"

"Do I- oh," I mumbled, not really sure on how to respond. "Fine, fine. You better not get me to walk into a wall or something, though," I muttered, turning around so he could tie the scarf around my head, covering up my eyes.

"Why, Jaeger, don't you trust me?" he asked rhetorically, moving his hands down to my shoulders so he could guide me. "Don't worry, I'm not going to purposefully walk you into anything."

"Purposefully?" I repeated, suddenly a little more nervous about not being able to see. He started guiding me back down the driveway, causing me to become even more confused. "Where are we going exactly?"

"Well if I told you then it wouldn't be a surprise, would it?"

I groaned, deciding that it was pointless trying to get Jean to give any details and instead trying to figure out where we were going myself. For awhile I had no clue, not even being able to tell how long we had been walking for.

Eventually, however, I was able to get some idea of where we were after hearing the sound of leaves crunching beneath our feet. Soon after the new sound, Jean's guiding became a little more... zig zagged. He wasn't very good at it, though, as my arms kept getting scratched.

"Why are we in the woods?"

"Shush, you'll see," he said, excitement showing through his voice. We eventually came to a stop, and he rushed round to stand in front of me before speaking up again. "Okay, you can take it off now!"

I squinted slightly as I took off the blindfold, my vision blurred before I adjusted to the light. I threw my hand over my mouth when my vision finally focussed, excitement flooding through me.

Just a few meters in front of me was the treehouse that Jean and I used to sit in when we were kids, and although it was mostly still the same you could tell that it was quite old. "Dude, this is... oh my God."

"I know! And, hey, that's not even the full surprise," he said with a wide grin, going over to climb up the wooden ladder. "Come on!"

I quickly followed him up, somehow getting even more excited as I saw the inside of the treehouse. "Remember when we were kids and we talked about having a sleepover here? Well, I thought we could do it now."

The normally bare flooring was covered in pillows and blankets, and I let out an excited squeal at the sight. I threw my arms around Jean, grinning widely. "Dude this is so cool! Thank you!"

Jean gave a small chuckle, sounding almost nervous as he awkwardly hugged me back. "No problem, man."

I eventually managed to convince myself to pull away, not wanting to make Jean uncomfortable. After a moment of glancing around, he spoke up again.

"Do you want to go get some food for tonight or something? We should probably bring a change of clothes too..."

"Sounds good to me," I agreed, giving a slight nod and turning around to climb back down to the ground. "You know, I'm surprised that this thing is still standing," I commented, allowing Jean to lead us back out of the woods.

"Yeah, well I've sort of had to replace a few parts on occasion, but it's actually done quite well at staying up. I don't think anyone else even knows it's here apart from us and whoever the fuck made it. No one really comes down here anymore, and it's so far off the actual path."

"Wait, you've been coming back here?"

He gave a small nod, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I haven't been here much lately, but I used to go a lot just to get some time alone. It was nice but... I don't know, it felt really odd not being there with you."

I couldn't help but smile sheepishly at his comment, my cheeks turning a light shade of red as I lowered my gaze to the ground. "Well, I guess it's a good thing I came back then," I said quietly.

"Definitely a good thing," he assured, offering a small grin as I looked back up to meet his gaze. I smiled back at him, before looking straight ahead once more as we made our way back to his house.

After Jean had finished packing his backpack we left to go to my place, telling his mother that we were staying over at Marco's for the night (I don't think she'd be particularly happy with us sleeping in the woods). Unsurprisingly, my father wasn't home, and so instead of calling him I simply left a note on the kitchen table saying that I was staying over at a friend's house.

"D'you think we could get pizza for tonight?" I asked as I locked the door to my house, tugging my backpack over my shoulder.

"'Course," he nodded, waiting for me to lock the door before starting to walk beside me. "Same as usual?"

"Yup," I said, smiling widely as we started making our way down to the shops. "Are we gonna have a fire? Oh, dude, can we make s'mores?" I asked excitedly, looking up at him with hopeful eyes.

"Uh, I guess if you want to," he mumbled, shrugging a bit. "I've never actually had s'mores so..." smores

I gave an overdramatic gasp at his admission, quickly grabbing his wrist to drag him into a nearby corner store. "This is awful! How could you not have had them before?"

"I just haven't," he mumbled, watching me quietly as I searched the shelves for everything that we needed. I had to let go of him so I was able to carry everything, dumping it down on the counter and pulling my wallet out from my bag.

Jean gave a small sigh as he watched me searching through my bag, before looking up at the blonde standing behind the counter. "He's shocked that I haven't had s'mores before."

"I'm not surprised, s'mores are amazing," he replied, before turning to look at me as I found my wallet, offering me a small smile. "You're Eren, right? My name's Armin, I think I'm in your maths class."

I gave a small smile back, recognising him as soon as I looked at him properly. He was probably the smartest kid that I knew, and whenever people in my class got stuck on questions they'd always go to him for an explanation (the teacher is an asshole so nobody asks him). "Hey. You don't have to introduce yourself, you know. I already know who you are."

He smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Ah, right, sorry," he said quietly.

I gave a small chuckle, taking out and handing over the correct amount of money. "You don't have to apologise either."

He blushed slightly, looking like he was about to apologise again but stopping himself before any words came out. Instead, he just handed over the receipt and mumbled a quiet "have a nice day."

After shoving everything in a plastic bag I made my way out of the shop with Jean, giving Armin a small wave. I mumbled a small thank you as Jean held the door open for me, smiling sweetly up at him.

"He seemed nice. Maybe I should actually talk to him more often,"

"Sure, I guess," he mumbled, only speaking again after seeing the questioning look I was giving him. "Just make sure you don't leave me again, yeah?" He said, his tone a little lighter than before.

I gave a quiet chuckle, glancing down at my feet and giving a small shrug. "You know I wouldn't do that," I mumbled, before lifting my gaze back up to look at him and grinning a bit. "Now, come on, I want that damn pizza."


	17. Confessions

Before heading back to the woods, Jean and I first went to get Pizza. Of course, we got the same as always - half cheese and half pineapple - but instead of having it once we got back like I had planned, we ended up eating most of it on our way there.

When we did finally get back it was already getting dark, the sun setting earlier than usual as it got closer to winter. I wasn't going to complain, though, since I always found the dark somewhat relaxing.

"I'll go start the fire, then," Jean said, handing his backpack over to me to put up in the treehouse. I left the plastic bag with the food in on the ground, going to carry everything else up to the small wooden room.

Have this small amount of time alone allowed me to really appreciate what Jean had done. Sure, it didn't really seem like much, but I was just so damn grateful that he actually wanted to spend some time with me. 

After setting all of our stuff down I climbed back down and out of the treehouse, going over to join Jean at the now lit campfire. He was already sitting down on a log that he had placed beside it, staring down at the flames.

"That was fast," I commented, sitting down beside him and placing the plastic bag off to the side. "Looks good."

Jean gave a slow nod in response, not looking away from the glowing campfire. "Yeah," he mumbled quietly, before seeming to snap out of his trance to look at me instead. "Uh, so... s'mores?"

I gave a small chuckle, reaching over to grab the contents of the plastic bag. "Yup. You'll love them, trust me," I said, handing over a marshmallow roasting stick. "I brought them from home just in case. Look, yours has a pink handle!" I said excitedly, pulling out my own and sticking a marshmallow at the end of it.

"Great, my favourite colour," he murmured sarcastically, though I could see that the corners of his lips were turned up to a small smile.

"Sorry, forgot about how fragile your masculinity is," I said playfully, keeping my gaze set forward as I held my marshmallow out just above the fire.

Jean gave a small huff, looking away from me as he copied my actions. "Whatever... These things better taste as good as you make them out to be."

"Come on, dude. When have I ever disappointed you?" I paused for a moment, before speaking up again. "Actually, don't answer that," I said, moving my marshmallow away from the fire and starting to order everything to make the s'more.

Jean didn't say anything as he copied what I was doing, looking down at his s'more once he was finished. "Bon appétit," I smiled, humming softly before taking a large bite out of my s'more. 

Jean rolled his eyes, taking a small bite, a small satisfied smile appearing a few moments after. 

"See! It's good, right?" I said, my voice sounding slightly muffled from the marshmallow in my mouth.

He gave a faint chuckle followed by a small nod. "Yeah, yeah. I guess it's okay."

"Shut up, it's amazing," I said, sticking out my tongue childishly before continuing to eat. I was just finishing it off when we heard Jean's phone go off, and a giggled at his light blush as I heard his ringtone. (It was 'Pretty Girls'. Not necessarily a bad song, but we all know how frail Jean's masculinity can be.)

"Hey, Marco," he greeted, standing up and rubbing the nape of his neck as he spoke. "Ah, yeah, sorry about that, man. Could you just tell her I'm with you? I'm out with Eren right now so you don't have to worry about me..."

I bit down on my lower lip, thankful that Jean wasn't facing me as he spoke to Marco on the phone. The moment Marco's name had been mentioned, my expression dropped, the feeling of jealousy quickly returning. 

God, what the hell was wrong with me? They're just friends, there's nothing I should be jealous of, but knowing how much they cared about each other just bothered me so much. Fuck, maybe they were really dating in secret. Maybe-

"Eren?" Jean said, waving his hands in front of my face to bring me back into reality. I snapped my gaze up at him, suddenly wondering how long he had been trying to get my attention. "You okay?" He asked, shoving his phone back in his pocket.

"I'm fine," I mumbled, giving a small shrug. "Just zoned out for a moment..."

"Yeah? You didn't look that fine. What were you thinking about?"

"Nothing," I insisted, folding my arms.

"Come on, Eren. It's obvious something is bothering you," he said softly, sitting down beside me and giving me a concerned look. 

"It was nothing-"

"Yes, it was."

"Jean-"

"Yes?"

I groaned in annoyance, just wanting him to drop the damn subject but knowing that he probably wouldn't. "Fine," I huffed, looking away as I tried to sort my thoughts into words. "It's just- Fuck, I guess I'm just jealous, okay?"

"Jealous?" He raised his brows, clearly confused. "Why? Of what?"

"You and Marco," I mumbled quietly, finally able to bring myself to glance over at him. "I mean, it's just that you guys are so close now. Like, really close. He got to spend six years with you whilst I was stuck in Germany waiting for Sixth Form just so I could come back to school here."

He stayed quiet for a few moments before speaking. "You know we'll always be friends, man," he smiled, nudging me gently. "I know it sucks that you had to move away but that's why we're here now, right? To make up for lost time."

"That's not what I meant," I said, moving my gaze away from him again out of embarrassment. "I mean, it is. Sort of. It's just, fuck, I'm glad we're friends again, really. And I'm glad I'm friends with Marco now, too. It's just that... Fuck, it's just that I don't want to just be friends with you now, I want to be more than that."

My words were met with silence, and I almost regretted looking away because now I was too cowardly to return my gaze to him as I waited for a response.

Just as I was about to apologise for making everything awkward his arm wrapped around me, his free hand reaching up to gently tilt my face towards his before pressing our lips together for a short and sweet kiss. I wrapped my arms around him, feeling as though I was dreaming as I kissed him back. When he pulled away I saw that he was smiling widely, and without realising it I soon was too.

"God, you have no idea how long I've wanted to do that," he said, still smiling like an idiot.

"Really? So you, um, like, feel the same way?" I asked, still not believing that this was actually happening. "'Cause I sort of thought that maybe you and Marco were, like, you know..."

Jean gave a slight chuckle, slipping both of his arms around my waist. "Well for a start, Marco's asexual and aromantic so you definitely don't have to worry about that," he said, and I felt sort of relieved to hear it. 

"Oh," I said quietly, a light blush spreading over my cheeks. "Wait, so um, are we like...?" I trailed off, not sure exactly how to put it. 

"Boyfriends?" Jean finished off for me, and I gave an awkward nod of confirmation. "Assuming you want to be, then, yes."

"You know I want to be," I mumbled quietly, smiling sheepishly up at him.

"Good. Then I guess we are," he said, pecking my lips lightly. 

"Good," I repeated after him, kissing him back before tugging him closer and resting my head against him. We stayed in peaceful silence for a while, neither of us wanting to move out of the other's hold, until Jean eventually pulled back again just enough to look at me.

"We should probably go to sleep, don't ya think?" He said, and I gave a small nod in response. "I'll put the fire out. You go on up without me."

"Okay," I mumbled quietly, hesitating slightly before giving him another peck on the lips. He gave a soft chuckle at my nervousness, holding me close to kiss me properly. When he finally pulled back again my cheeks had turned a light shade of pink, and I gave him a sheepish smile before standing up. I carefully made my way back up to the treehouse, using my phone's flashlight so I could see where I was going. Jean came up a few minutes after me, and we both took off our shoes before crawling under the duvet.

Jean lay on his back, and I shuffled over so that my head was resting on his chest, draping my arms over his stomach. "Night, Eren," he whispered.

"Goodnight."


	18. Nerves

I groaned lightly as I slowly woke up the next morning, rubbing at my eyes in an attempt to block out the bright sunlight. I peeked one eye open, feeling around for the body that should've been laying next to me and sitting up when I couldn't find him.

I glanced around the small wooden room, still not fully awake yet as I wondered where he was. For a moment I worried that he had left or that last night was nothing but a dream, but I was quickly filled with relief when I peered outside and saw him sitting on the edge of the platform.

I grabbed one of the thinner blankets and wrapped it around my shoulders before shuffling over to sit beside him, swinging my legs over the edge of the small platform. I glanced up at Jean, still gripping onto the corners of the blanket as I offered him a small smile.

He gave a faint smile back, leaning over to peck my lips and mumbling a quiet "Mornin'" 

"Good morning," I mumbled back, my smile growing a little at the small action. "How long have you been awake?"

"Not too long," he answered, giving a small shrug. "Are you hungry? We could just have pizza for breakfast."

"Sounds good to me," I smiled, swinging my legs as he reached over to grab the almost empty pizza box. "I think I prefer pizza cold anyway."

"I know you do," Jean chuckled, handing over one of the plain slices. "You always have."

"Guess some things never change," I commented with a small smile, before taking a bite out of the pizza slice. "Aren't you going to have any?"

Jean glanced down at the cardboard box, moving it out of the way before looking back up at me. "Eh, I'm not really that hungry," he mumbled, giving a small shrug of his shoulders.

I gave him a mildly concerned look, to which he simply rolled his eyes and gave me a reassuring kiss on the cheek. "Seriously, I'm just not hungry. I promise I'll eat something when we get home."

I gave a small nod, knowing that I could trust him but still making a mental note to assure he actually did end up eating something later. "Hey, are we actually going to be able to carry all this stuff back to yours in one trip?" I asked, deciding to change the subject as I continued to eat.

"I think so. It's a good thing I don't live too far away."

"That's for sure," I agreed, finishing off my slice before glancing back inside the room. "We should probably get dressed first, though."

"That would be a good idea," he said, smiling faintly as he stood up at held out his hand for me. I mumbled a quiet thank you, smiling sheepishly as I stood up before going in to get changed.

I didn't bother changing out of my underwear (I was too awkward to), simply putting on clean clothes and putting the dirty ones back into my backpack. We split the blankets and pillows between us and managed to carry everything back to his place in one go.

"Hey, so are we gonna tell your mum?" I asked as we neared his house, looking up at Jean.

"Of course. I mean, she already knew I had a crush on you anyway," he admitted, giving a nervous chuckle. 

"Awh, Jeanie."

"Oh, shut up," he muttered, readjusting his hold on everything as we reached his house so he could open the front door. Once we were inside we went into the living room to put down all of the blankets and within seconds of being inside we could already hear Jean's mother calling for us.

"Oh, there you two are!" She exclaimed, walking over and pulling the both of us into a hug. "Marco already told me the news. You both are so cute together," she said, smiling widely as she let go.

I raised my brows slightly, glancing over at Jean. "When did you tell Marco?"

"Um, a little before we went to sleep," he said, reaching up to rub the nape of his neck. "I was just excited to tell him"

I gave a quiet chuckle, reaching over to hold his hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. "Too cute, Jeanie."

Jean groaned at the nickname, resulting in a small laugh from his mother. "Well, I won't keep you two any longer, I'm going out! There's food in the fridge, make sure you eat something for lunch."

"We will, ma," Jean assured, and after giving a small smile she turned around to leave.

"Well, you have to have breakfast first," I said after she had left, looking up at Jean.

He rolled his eyes, reaching up with his free hand to ruffle my hair. "Yeah, yeah. I'll have some pizza or whatever," he shrugged, grabbing the almost empty box from on top of the blanket pile and starting to make his way upstairs.

I followed closely behind, letting him lead me up to the room where we had previously played video games. We both sat down on the sofa, Jean starting to take small bites out of his pizza slice as I tried to find something to watch on Netflix.

After I had chosen something I shuffled up to Jean, leaning against him slightly whilst keeping me eyes set on the screen. After a few minutes I felt Jean poke my shoulder, and I glanced over to see him holding up his phone.

"Quick selfie?"

I gave a soft chuckle, nodding a little and wrapping my arm around his waist. "Is this your excuse for showing everyone that you're in a relationship?"

"Maybe," he mumbled, draping his arm over my shoulders. "Now, smile!"

I rolled my eyes before smiling widely for the photo, a blush spreading across my cheeks as Jean kissed my cheek just as he took the photo. He chuckled softly at my reddened face, holding me closer as he typed out a caption and posted it to Instagram. 

"No need to get all embarrassed, Jaeger," he grinned, putting his phone to the side and pecking me on the lips. "Not that I'm complaining. You look so cute when you're blushing like that."

"Shut up," I said, my cheeks heating up even more.

"Make me."

Reaching up, I flicked him lightly on the nose, grinning faintly at his irritated expression before giving into the cliche and pressing our lips together. The corners of his lips twitched up to a small grin, his free hand reaching up to push me backwards so I was lying down.

I wrapped my arms around his waist, gasping lightly as he nipped on my lower lip. He slipped his tongue past my lips, and I could feel my heart beating in my chest as he kissed me roughly. I hadn't even kissed anyone before Jean, and I worried my nerves were showing too much.

He eventually pulled back from my lips, instead trailing wet kisses down my neck. "Jean, please," I mumbled breathlessly, nervous as he ran his hand up under my shirt.

"Mm, what is it, Eren?" he whispered lowly in my ear, tugging my shirt lightly.

"No, Jean, I mean stop," I said, relaxing slightly as he pulled back. "Sorry, I'm just nervous," I added quickly, noting his worried expression after I had told him to stop. "Sorry."

We both moved to sit up straight, and Jean gave a reassuring smile as I apologised again. He pecked my cheek gently, holding my hand and giving it a small squeeze. "You don't have to apologise, Eren. I'm not going to rush you into anything."

I let out a small sigh of relief, smiling gratefully up at him. "Thank you..."

Jean chuckled softly, pulling me into a hug and holding me close. "No problem."

I hugged him back, resting my chin on his shoulder and staying in comfortable silence. I eventually pulled back, knowing from past experience that it was unlikely Jean would do so first. "Um, so..."

"Do you just want to play video games then?"

I smiled faintly, giving a short nod. "Yeah, that sounds good to me."

"You choose."

I gave another nod, going over to switch the discs in his console and turn everything on. After everything was set up I returned to the couch, passing one of the controllers over to Jean. He took it with his free hand, the other holding his phone.

"Our photo already has three hundred likes," he informed, grinning smugly as he showed me the screen. "Apparently, we make a cute couple."

"Apparently, a bunch of people made bets on whether we'd get together or not," I mumbled, scrolling through the vast amount of comments. "Christ, Jean. How many followers do you have?"

"Like, 30 thousand?"

"Jesus, that's like... twenty-nine thousand, eight hundred and ninety more than I have."

Jean chuckled softly, locking his phone and putting it to the side. "Yeah, but you don't take an excessive amount of selfies."

"Only because I'm not hot enough to take as many selfies like you."

"Well that's definitely not true," he said, leaning forward and kissing me gently. "You're fucking gorgeous."

I looked away, feeling my cheeks heat up at the compliment."Thank you..."

"No problem. Now, should we get started on the video game?"

I looked back up at him, giving a small smile. "Definitely."


	19. Offers

After spending a few hours at Jean's place, we decided to go out again to get some lunch. Although Jean was against it at first, we ended up going to Starbucks. We both got a panini and hot chocolate, except Jean got white and I got milk.

We sat together in the corner at the back where it was a little more empty. I always preferred sitting away from other people when in cafes and such; it just feels a lot more personal and a lot less awkward.

I shuffled up a little closer to Jean on the small sofa, taking small sips of my drink. I raised my brow slightly when he let out a soft chuckle, and I turned my head up to look at him.

"Nice moustache," he said, pointing to the layer of whipped cream on my top lip. Heat rushed up to my cheeks, but before I could wipe it away he had pressed his lips to mine, the action only making my cheeks heat up more.

The corners of his lips tugged up into a small grin when he pulled back, his fingers lightly tucking some of my hair behind my ear. "There," he whispered quietly, pecking my cheek. "All gone."

Smiling sheepishly I glanced away from him, but before I could enjoy the seemingly perfect moment for too long, I spotted two people staring at us from the front of the shop. My eyes grew wider slightly, and Jean slipped his hand into my own, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"They're just jealous, Eren. Don't let the staring bother you."

Giving a small shake of my head, my next words came out as a quiet whisper as I continued to stare back at them. "That's not it. The, um, the one on the left is the one who beat me up before..."

My heart pounded in my chest as the two started walking over in my direction, countless thoughts running through my mind. What if they were angry with me? I never did show up after the whole 'you have 24 hours' deal. 

I tightly squeezed Jean's hand as the blonde - Erwin I think his name was - reached our table. The other trailed behind him slightly, looking almost reluctant in following him.

"Eren," the blonde greeted, nodding down at me. 

"What do you want?" I whispered, mentally slapping myself for how weak I sounded.

"To apologise," he answered, and my expression must have shown just how confused I was because he was then chuckling lightly. "Mike here got a little confused on that night. It was never our intention to hurt you."

"I, um, I don't..." I trailed off, completely stuck for words.

"We don't blame you if you don't forgive us," he said, before leaning over the table, resting his forearms on the top. "However, we would like to... propose something to you," he continued, and I could see Jean sending me a concerned look out of the corner of my eye.

"Alright..." I said quietly, and the corners of Erwin's lips curled up into a faint smirk.

"I know we're not the ones who hurt you the most, Eren, and I still haven't managed to get back what Levi took from me. If you want to, I do have a plan for us to both get what we want."

My brows raised slightly, confusion returning to my expression. "What do you think I would want?"

"Revenge." I bit down on my lower lip, but before I could say anything in response he was standing up straight and speaking again. "You don't have to make a decision right now," he assured, pulling out a piece of paper and pen and writing something down on it. "Call me when you decide," he said, handing over the piece of paper with his number written down on it.

"Thanks," I mumbled, holding the paper in both hands and staring down at it. I couldn't explain why, but there was something about Erwin that made me trust him easily. Maybe...

"Eren," Jean said sternly, only just managing to snap me out of my thoughts. "You're not actually considering this, are you?"

"Why shouldn't I?" I snapped back, sounding a little harsher than I intended. "Levi deserves it."

"He'll just hurt you again, and it will be ten times worse than last time."

"Dude, what's your problem? Can't you just side with me for once?"

"Eren, please," he said, holding onto my shoulders and making me face him. "I don't want to see you getting hurt again. Please, just..." he sighed softly, one of his hands trailing down to hold onto one side of the paper, his expression looking a mix of concern and desperation.

My expression softened slightly and, after a few moments, I hesitantly let go of the paper. Jean visibly relaxed as he took it away from me, not waiting a second before crunching it up and shoving it in his pocket, then hastily wrapping his arms around my waist.

"Thank you," he mumbled softly against my lips, kissing me gently before pulling away again. I just nodded in response, turning back to face the table and slipping my hand into his. 

I knew Jean was right, and that trying to get revenge on Levi would only create more problems, but I just couldn't stop thinking about it. Jean didn't have to protect me, and although I appreciated his concern I didn't find it completely necessary.

I still found it sweet, though.

~

The next day was our first day of school as a couple and, apart from the few comments on how cute we were together, nobody really paid us that much attention. It was a relief, really. I wasn't exactly keen on attention.

I was on my way to third period when someone grabbed a hold of my wrist, tugging me into the boys bathroom, and a wave of panic ran through me at the thought of who it might be. A list of names ran through my mind in those few seconds, and I was mentally preparing myself to punch the other if it were to end up being Levi.

My gaze snapped up to see who it was, a small sigh of relief slipping past my lips when I looked up to see no other than Jean, and my lips tugged up into a smile.

He slipped his arms around my waist, grinning faintly as he leant down and pressed our lips together. I gave a quiet whine, knowing that I was going to be late to my lesson, but kissed him back anyway.

"Jean," I whined softly against his lips, "I'm going to be late for art."

"Mm, don't care," he mumbled, tugging me a little closer. I sighed softly against his lips, finally giving in as I moved my arms to wrap around him.

It was only when we heard a quiet sound of disapproval that we pulled away from each other, Jean keeping an arm wrapped protectively around me as we turned to face the source. I immediately felt sick to my stomach, my uneasiness clear to Jean as he moved to hold me closer.

Levi stood in front of us with his arms crossed, slowly looking us over. "Fucking disgusting," he muttered, before setting his gaze firmly on Jean. "I don't know how you can kiss him without being sick," he said, a small smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. "Then again, that's probably the idea. You have a lot of experience with making yourself sick, haven't you, Jeanieboy?"

Jean tightened his hold on me, and I couldn't tell whether it was to hold me back or hold himself back. Unlike Jean, who had managed to keep his expression mostly blank, I was clearly furious at what Levi had said.

"How dare you!" I spat, my hands clenching into fists at my sides. "You can't just fucking-"

"Eren," Jean said softly, leaning down to kiss my cheek. "It's okay. Don't let him get to you."

"You should really listen to your boyfriend, kid. Don't want you getting hurt again, do we?" He said, moving to walk past us but pausing when he reached Jean. He looked him over, giving a small hum. "Getting a little on the chubby side, Kirstein. But you know how to fix that," he said, sticking his index finger in his mouth in a gagging motion, before snorting and walking away.

I made a move to go after him, but before I could Jean had grabbed onto my hand and was pulling me back out into the hallway. I looked up at him, my brows shooting up in a mix of confusion and concern. 

"Dude, you can't just let him talk to you like that. You-"

"Yes, I can," he cut in, stopping in his steps and turning to face me, placing his hands on my shoulders. "It doesn't bother me, Eren. Nothing he says will ever bother me, and you shouldn't let it bother you either." He sighed softly, removing his hands from my shoulder to instead hold onto my hands.

"I meant what I said about leaving him alone. I'm not going to let him hurt you again," he promised, and I bit down on my lower lip to stop myself from arguing with him.

I gave a small nod, and after giving me another kiss on the cheek he let go of my hands. "You should probably head to lessons now. I'll see you later, yeah?"

"Yeah, see you," I said, watching him turn to leave for a few moments before starting to make my way to my own lesson.

I didn't care what Jean said, I had no intention of just letting Levi be. That dick had to get some form of payback, and thanks to Erwin I now had a way to make sure he gets it. The only problem was that Jean took his number away from me...

No, wait. I don't need his number. I know where he lives! All I have to do is go there and we can sort everything out...

Levi won't even know what's hit him.


	20. Meetings

I couldn't just go straight to Erwin's place. If I were to go straight there during school hours, it wouldn't take long for Jean to realise that I had gone off somewhere and, even through text, he could probably tell when I'm lying.

So instead I waited, constantly running the directions through my mind. I may have only been there once, but I was positive that I knew where I was going. When the final bell rang for the end of the day, I gave Jean a quick peck on the lips and told him that I had to go home to do art. He seemed to buy it, and with a small wave goodbye he was off to go and catch his bus home.

Technically, I wasn't even lying, I really did have a bunch of artwork to catch up on. It's just that I wasn't necessarily going to do it right now.

Luckily, my memory was a lot better than I give it credit for and so it wasn't too long before I had made it to Erwin's house. I started to wonder if he'd even be home when I got there, but there wasn't exactly anywhere else that I'd be able to find him and there was no harm in trying.

Well, hopefully.

I rang the doorbell, taking the moments that I was waiting for an answer to fully take in the appearance of his house. How the hell did his family pay for this? Actually, thinking about it, does he even live with his family still? Christ, I didn't even know how old he was.

Maybe this was a mistake. Maybe-

I didn't even have time to change my mind, as only a few moments later the door was opened and Erwin was standing in front of me. He raised a brow slightly, leaning against the doorframe, and I realised that he was waiting for an explanation on why I was at his house and hadn't just called him.

"My boyfriend took your number from me. I came here before when Levi took whatever he took from you..."

That seemed to be good enough for him, and with a small nod and a hum he moved out of the way to let me inside. He led me into the living room, both of us sitting down opposite one another and, after a few minutes of steady silence, he spoke.

"I'm guessing you have no idea what Levi stole from me?"

I answered with a small shake of my head. "All I saw was a brown envelope. I have no idea what was inside..."

He gave a small nod that was accompanied by a hum, sitting up straight in his seat and crossing one leg over the other. I shifted awkwardly in my seat, waiting for him to say something before guessing he wasn't going to. "So... What's the plan?"

"Well, firstly, we need to get back what Levi stole from me."

He sounded so formal. He was intimidating but welcoming at the same time. In all honesty, it kind of felt like I was talking to Levi again. They both seemed so similar yet so different at the same time. Still, that was probably a good thing, because despite what people say you can fight fire with fire. And, in this case, that's the only way I'll be able to win.

"And how are we going to do that?" I responded.

"Well, I was-" Interrupted. He was cut off by the sound of his phone ringing in his pocket. He glanced down to the source of the sound, waiting a few moments before pulling it out and checking who was calling him. "Will you excuse me?"

The question was rhetorical, of course, and he was up and out of the room before he had even finished saying it. Yet another similarity to Levi - full of secrets that I knew I'd never be told. 

Part of me wondered if he was just doing the exact same thing to me that Levi did. He could manipulate people, that was for sure, and he was definitely going to get something out of me. That was fine, though, I was okay with that. The real question was whether I'd end up getting what I wanted as well.

"Sorry about that," he said, giving me what appeared to be a genuine apologetic look as he stood in the doorway to the living room. "I'm afraid I have to go deal with this. We can continue this the same time tomorrow."

Standing, I gave a small nod before heading over to the doorway. I paused next to him when I heard my name, warily looking up at him.

"Just remember that you do get a say in all of this. I'm not going to force you to do anything you don't want to."

I couldn't even tell if I believed him. I wanted to, and I felt like I could, but after what happened with Levi I was finding it difficult to trust people so easily. So, I just gave another nod before making my way outside.

Tomorrow. I can figure out how to get revenge on Levi tomorrow. Christ, it felt like I'd never be able to beat that asshole. 

~

"Eren? Are you even listening to me?"

"Hm?" I looked up at Jean, not even having realised that I had blanked out until he brought me back to reality. I couldn't help it, though. It was only three hours until I had to be back at Erwin's and it was difficult not to think about it. I knew I had been blanking out for most of the day, but at least in class, I was able to use the work to distract myself. Now it was lunch time, and with it getting closer to when I had to meet Erwin it was becoming more difficult to stay distracted from it.

He just sighed, removing his arm from my shoulders and turning to look at me properly. "Are you okay? You're not still thinking about what happened with Levi yesterday, are you?"

I shook my head a little, and suddenly I was more aware of the fact that by going to see Erwin I was completely lying to Jean. I didn't have a choice, though, did I? Levi needed to be taught a lesson, and if Jean couldn't see that then lying to him was my only option. "I'm fine. Sorry. I just... blanked out, I guess."

Giving a quiet hum, he leant forward and pecked my lips. "Alright... Hey, do you want to come over to mine after school? We can watch a movie if you want. I'll even watch Pretty Little Liars for you."

I bit down on my lip, guiltily rubbing the nape of my neck. "Um... Mind if I pass? I still have to finish off some art..."

"Oh. Uh, yeah, sure," he mumbled, and the disappointed look he had made me feel so much more guilty. "So, uh, you're just gonna go straight home today then?"

I raised my brows slightly, giving a slow nod in answer. "Yeah... Why would I not be?"

He shrugged in response, pulling his phone out of his pocket before standing up. "Just asking. Come on, we'll be late for fourth period if we don't leave soon."

I nodded and stood up as well, slipping my hand into his and offering a faint smile. "Hey, we can always just watch a movie together tomorrow," I assured, pausing for a moment to think. "Or... Maybe even later on today? I might, uh, finish up with my art early enough. I don't know how long it will take, though, so I can't promise anything..."

"Well, you probably won't have much control over when you finish with your art, will you?"

"Uh... No, I guess not," I mumbled quietly.

He gave a small smile, squeezing my hand and kissing my cheek. "Don't worry about it, then. I'll see you when I see you."

I just smiled up at him in response, pulling him into a slow kiss before walking back to the school building with him in silence.

The following two hours were a total drag, and the walk down to Erwin's felt like it couldn't happen fast enough. All I wanted was some payback, and I hoped to God that after all this waiting the end result would be worth it.

I rang the doorbell, unsurprised when the door was opened almost straight after. He looked me over before standing off to the side to let me inside, and I didn't even look at him as I made my way to the living room. God, I swear if-

I froze when I turned the corner, my eyes widening when my eyes settled on the figure sitting where I had been yesterday, and his name slipped past my lips before I even realised it.

"Jean?"


	21. Honesty

"Jean?"

My voice was quiet, the name coming out as barely even a whisper, guilt preventing me from having it come out any other way. He stood up as soon as he saw me, crossing his arms. "Nice artwork you're doing here."

I walked over to him, the feeling of guilt growing more and more. "Jean, please, I-"

"I know," he interrupted, his voice a little softer this time. "You don't have to explain."

"I don't?"

He gave a small shake of his head, walking over and holding onto my hands. "You don't. It's okay, I get why you did it."

I let out a small sigh of relief. "You do?"

He nodded, his expression now changing to a more stern one. "I can't just let you do this, though, Eren. I'm not letting you get hurt again-"

I scoffed, rolling my eyes and tugging my hands away from him. Christ, what the hell was he on about? "I'm not going to get hurt."

"Yeah, well, that's what you thought last time I warned you about him and we both know how that turned out."

"What the fuck- Jean, why are you being such an asshole?"

"Why are you being so reckless? You can't possibly think that this is going to end well, can you?"

"It will end well if you just stop defending him."

"I'm not defending him, Eren, I'm just worried about you. Please, can we just go?" He asked, reaching out to grab one of my hands again. I pulled my hand away, stepping back a little.

"You can go. I'm not leaving until I know how to get back at Levi."

"Jesus, Eren, wake up! Even if you do manage to get back at him, he'll only do something ten times worse to you. Trust me, you just need to let this go."

"But I don't want-"

"I don't care!" He was getting more worked up now, his voice rising in volume. "What are you gonna do, huh? Break into his house and mess it up? Get someone to beat him up? I mean, you're sixteen for God's sake! You should be going on cute dates and concentrating on your school work, not trying to get revenge on my ex-" He cut himself off then, biting down on lower lip to shut himself up. "Shit, wait-"

I stared up at him, my eyes wide as I registered what he had just said. "You... You and Levi dated?" 

Why hadn't he told me? Was he actually serious right now?

Wait, no, I guess it did make sense. It explained why Jean knew how bad Levi was, and why he decided to warn me about him in the first place. It explained how Levi knew about Jean's eating disorder, and maybe it was even how Levi knew about my favourite movie as a kid. 

God, I'm so fucking stupid.

"I think I should go now," I mumbled quietly, just wanting to go somewhere else to have some time alone to think. I was already walking out as I said it, quickly slipping past Erwin and out through the front door.

"Eren, wait," Jean said, holding onto my wrist as I reached the entrance to the front lawn, and spinning me around to face him. "I'm sorry, okay? I was going to tell you eventually, I just never knew the right way to say it."

"Oh, and blurting it out on accident was the right way to say it?" I snapped at him as I tugged my wrist from his grip, too annoyed to take a second to think things through. "Is this why you don't want me getting back at him? You don't want me hurting him? What, do you still have feelings for him or something?"

"What? No! Eren, it wasn't-"

"Is that the only reason he pretended to like me? Was that just to get back at you? Was he trying to make you jealous or something?" I asked, just blurting out whatever came to mind and not bothering to give him any time to answer. "Or is that why you're dating me? Are you trying to make him jealous? Shit, why can't anyone just be fucking honest for once!"

He took a deep breath. "Eren, just calm down, okay? You're overreacting-"

"Overreacting? Overreacting? How the hell am I suppose to react? You fucking dated- I mean you- God, Just forget it. Just leave me alone!" I said, turning around and walking off before he could say anything else to me.

I was worked up and overthinking everything, and there was nothing I wanted more than to just clear my head. So, I made my way up to the empty park that was near the school, sat down on the grass, and put on my headphones.

Closing my eyes, I sat with my legs crossed and started playing some music. I turned up the volume, and when I still had thoughts popping into my head I turned it up some more just to drown them out. I just needed to escape reality for awhile...

I don't know how long I ended up sitting there for. Once I had managed to just relax it was like I had blanked out completely. When I finally seemed to snap back into reality I pulled off my headphones, giving a quiet groan when I realised just how loud my music had been playing. Christ, I wouldn't be surprised if I went deaf one day because of it.

Now calm, I was able to start thinking things through. Jean was right, I guess, I probably did overreact a little. Hell, I didn't even give him a chance to explain anything. For all I knew, Jean could have experienced far worse things with Levi than I had. That was probably why he had warned me about him in the first place...

Fucking hell, why do I have to be such an asshole? Jean has only ever looked out for me, even back when we were kids, and I just shouted at him and accused him of using me. I knew he'd never purposefully do something to hurt me.

I grabbed my phone, chewing lightly on my lower lip and calling Jean's number. He answered almost immediately but stayed silent as he waited for me to say something.

"Um, hey," I mumbled quietly, looking down at my lap as I spoke. "I've, uh, calmed down now." I waited for a moment for him to respond, only to be met with silence. "...I'm sorry. You were right, I did overreact."

"I know," he said after a moment, his tone slightly softer than usual. "You might be older now, Eren, but you really haven't changed all that much from when you were younger. You always did get pretty heated in the moment," he said, sounding almost affectionate as he said it, before sighing softly. "Still, you had every right to react the way you did. I should have told you sooner."

"Can we meet up? You can explain everything you want to me then."

"Okay."

"I'm at the park. Could you come and meet me here?"

"I'm on my way."

I sighed softly, hanging up the call and going over to sit on the bench. I moved over a little when Jean arrived less than a two minutes later, raising my brows slightly at how fast he had gotten here. "That was quick."

"I knew where you were already," he shrugged.

"You fucking stalker," I said jokingly, offering a small smile.

He smiled back, shaking his head a little. "Didn't stalk you. I just know you well enough to guess where you'd be."

"Dork," I mumbled quietly, smiling a little to myself before sighing softly. "So, um, we should probably get to talking about the thing..."

"Yeah. Right, okay, I guess I'll just tell you everything right from the beginning then?" He started, pausing for a moment in thought before speaking again. "So, uh, it was just over a year ago I guess. It was in the summer holidays, so I was around 15 at the time. Um, I was feeling kind of down I guess? There just wasn't really much to do, since Marco was staying with his family a few hours away and I didn't really have any other friends. Levi started talking to me sometime during the second week off, and I ended up just going over to his place every day. We never really went anywhere else together. Anyway, uh, we eventually started doing, um, things together..."

"Did you have sex?" I asked, not really sure what else he would've have meant.

He gave a small nod. "Yeah. As well as other things... And we both referred to it as a relationship. I guess I didn't really notice at the time, but looking back, it was so obvious he was pretty much just using me for sex... He called it off before school started again, going on about how he wouldn't ever want anyone else knowing about 'us'...

"I started thinking it was because of how I looked, and that I was too, uh, fat. I had had problems with anorexia before, so I guess I kind of just, uh, relapsed," he said nervously, shifting his gaze away from me. "Um, it wasn't as bad that time, though. Well, it sort of was, but Marco managed to catch on pretty quick to what I was doing once he got back so I guess I just got help earlier on than before.

"I'm not really sure how, but Levi managed to find out about it. We weren't even talking at this point since he made it clear that everything between us was over, but once he found out he started saying comments about it when no one else was listening. He still does, but you already know that. It doesn't bother me anymore, but it had a massive impact on me back then because I was still trying to get better from it and I guess the whole situation with him was just fucking with me a bit," he said, sighing softly and dragging his fingers through his hair. "Anyway, um, that's everything."

I stayed silent, not really sure what to say in response, before pulling him into a hug. Jean wrapped his arms around me, and I wasn't sure how he was feeling after telling me everything. He didn't seem like he was about to have a total breakdown over it or anything, but it was clearly having an effect on him.

Not that that was unsurprising. By the sounds of it, the only people that knew about everything was his mother, Marco, Levi, and me. I couldn't help but feel guilty for not being there for him when it had happened...

"I won't try to get back at Levi anymore. I- um, thank you for telling me. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you during any of this..."

"It's okay," he mumbled quietly, resting his chin on my shoulder. "Thank you. Honestly, I think we should both just try to forget about him."

"I know." He was right, really, and even though I still desperately wanted Levi to get what he deserved I knew I'd only end up harming myself as well. We eventually pulled back from each other, but it was only in response to the raindrops slowly starting to fall down onto us. I gave a small sigh. "Let's go back to my place before it starts chucking it down."

He gave a small nod, standing up and slipping his hand into mine as we started walking. "Um, Eren?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for listening to me."

I looked up at him, offering a small smile and squeezing his hand gently. "Anytime."


	22. Free

By the time we reached my place, Jean and I were absolutely soaked from the rain. Our clothes and hair were dripping with water and I was shivering a little from the cold but I didn't care because it only made Jean hold me closer. 

He held his arm around my waist as we slipped through the front door, a soft sigh escaping him at the warmness of the house. I jumped slightly when I heard my dad call out my name from the living room, and I quickly jerked away from Jean just before he entered the hallway. 

I still hadn't told my father about us. Hell, he didn't even know I was gay. Though, how would he know? I had barely even spoken to him since the divorce, and even now that we live together we're barely ever home at the same time to have actual conversations. I didn't really want to have to tell him either. We weren't exactly close, and although I doubted he'd care that much about me being gay at all, I was still worried there was a chance he'd react badly.

"Oh. Hello, Jean. I haven't seen you here in a long time," my father greeted, looking him over.

Jean gave a short nod in return, appearing to be sharing my nervousness. I wasn't too surprised. He always had been quite intimidated by my father, especially back when we were kids. "Uh, yeah. Hey."

My father nodded again before turning his attention completely to me, taking a moment to look me over. "I've been hearing rumours about you two."

Oh God.

"I heard that you two are dating now. Is this true?"

Fuck my life. I gave a small nod in response, shifting awkwardly before slipping my hand into Jean's. "Um, yeah. It is."

"God damn it," he muttered under his breath, dragging his fingers through his hair. I looked over at Jean nervously, my heart picking up in pace until my father spoke again. "Now I owe your mother twenty quid."

"Jesus Christ," I breathed, my head falling into my free hand. Jean just burst out laughing next to me, leaning forward slightly as he tried to hold himself up. I elbowed his side in annoyance, shooting him a glare when he wouldn't stop laughing before groaning and dragging him up the stairs to my room. 

I closed my bedroom door behind us, leaning back against it and huffing as I looked up at him. He grinned down at me, slipping his arms back around my waist and pulling me towards him. "Cheer up, Jaeger. At least he didn't act like how you expected him to," he said, leaning down to kiss me gently. 

I sighed softly against his lips, wrapping my arms around him and kissing him back. I eventually pulled away, offering him a small smile. "Uh, we should probably go warm up or something," I said, holding onto his hand and pulling him over to my bed.

"In your bed?" He questioned playfully, wiggling his brows at me and chuckling lightly when I rolled my eyes at him. "Don't worry, Eren. I'm just joking... Unless...?"

"Not happening," I said, slipping under the covers and tugging Jean over to sit beside me. "Just, you know, not yet," I mumbled, glancing away from him and turning on the TV.

"I know, I know. Whenever you're ready," he promised, moving a little closer and wrapping an arm around me. He sighed softly then, looking over at the television. "Please don't tell me we're going to watch Pretty Little Liars."

"Oh, shut up. I know you like it."

"Yeah. It's a good thing I like it since we don't watch anything else."

"Fine," I huffed, handing the remote over to him. "You can choose what we watch, this time, Jeanie."

"Awh, such a sweet boyfriend," he grinned, flicking through the different movies. He paused when he came across My Neighbour Totoro, glancing over at me with a faint smile and giving me a nudge. "What about this?"

Honestly, I wasn't all too keen on watching it. The last time I had seen the movie was with Levi, so it wasn't exactly a movie that I wanted to watch. Still... I guessed it would be best to watch it again with Jean, so I could replace the memory of watching it at Levi's with this instead. 

"Looks good to me," I smiled, looking back over at the screen and leaning against him. I sighed softly then, just staring blankly at the screen. "I'm so glad I moved back here," I said quietly.

"I know. I'm glad too."

"You're the best thing to ever happen to me, you know. Even when we were kids."

"I know, Eren," he said softly, leaning down and kissing my cheek. "I'm not going anywhere, either, so just relax and watch the movie."

I gave a small nod, cuddling up to him and resting my head on his chest. Despite it being only seven in the evening, I ended up falling asleep on him around halfway through the film. For whatever reason, I felt extremely sleepy in that moment, and with the safe and comforting feeling that Jean provided it wasn't exactly difficult to sleep into sleep. 

~

When I woke up it was to the sound of Jean's phone going off, and we both just groaned in response. We simply ignored it, and I buried my face further into Jean's chest in an attempt to block out the sound. 

I gave a soft sigh of relief when the ringtone cut off, only to have it go off again a few seconds later. I huffed lightly and moved off of Jean so he could answer it, rubbing at my eyes to try and wake myself up.

"Jean?"

The voice belonged to Marco, and I glanced over to see that Jean had put the call on speakerphone. 

"Jean, you should see what's happening at school right now. Literally, all of our year came out of lessons to get a look 'cause the police are here."

"The police? What's happening?" I asked, sitting up properly now. Christ, how long had we even been asleep for? Must have been at least thirteen hours or so.

"Oh, hey, Eren. Well, uh, the police just sort of marched right in and... Well, by the looks of it, they've arrested Levi. No one really knows what happened but there's a rumour going around that he killed someone."

"What? He killed someone?" I asked, leaning over slightly so he could hear me properly.

"Oh, come on, guys. Do you actually believe that?" Jean said, rolling his eyes. "That's just a rumour. I mean, sure, Levi is a bad guy but he's not fucking crazy enough to kill someone."

"Yeah but he's enough of a fucking dick to do something like that. I mean, shit, Jean. What if it was something to do with Erwin?" 

"Well if it was then it's a good thing I got your ass out of there yesterday," he said, then speaking again before I had a chance to respond. "Look, it doesn't matter why he was arrested. Let's just be glad that he'll be gone, at least for awhile."

I stayed quiet for a moment, looking down as what Jean said sunk in. "So... We can just forget about him?"

"Yes we can," he said slowly, smiling a little and leaning in to kiss me gently. "I told you it would all work out, didn't I?"

"But what if-"

"No. Don't even bother spending any more time thinking about it, Eren. Just let it go now that you've been given the chance to."

I gave a small nod, pulling him in for another slow kiss and sighing softly against his lips. There was an awkward cough on the other side of the line, and Marco spoke up a moment later. "Well then. I'm just gonna hang up now..."

Jean chuckled softly. "Sorry, Mar," he smiled, just letting him hang up. 

It felt weird. I guess I was almost relieved to know that I had a chance to properly forget about Levi but, at the same time, I couldn't help but still think about him. I guess that wasn't that surprising, given the circumstances. Everyone was going to be thinking about him now. Damn jerk - that's probably something he would like.

Still, I relaxed slightly at the thought that I'd eventually be able to put him out of my mind. Jean was right, after all, there was no point in wasting any more time thinking about the whole situation. I had the chance to start focusing purely on my work and the people I cared for, and I did. I finally took the time to catch up with my artwork, I started hanging out with Jean and Marco a lot more, and I even started making a few more friends. In maths, I moved over to sit with Armin, who ended up becoming a pretty good friend of mine.

It was nice. After spending the past five years or so being alone most of the time, it felt like I was finally really enjoying myself again. To be honest, it was almost completely because of Jean. I don't know what I'd do without him, and I knew that neither of us had any plans on finding out.

With any luck, we'd stay together until we died. I honestly don't think there was anyone else that I'd want to spend my life with more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it, guys. I won't be posting any more chapters for this fic. Thank you so much for all your comments and support. I hope you enjoyed reading it <3


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